Battery Electrode Laser Structuring for Low-Tortuosity Coatings
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional laser processing methods for battery electrodes are time-consuming and uneconomical, especially when dealing with large dimensions, and they face challenges in beam deflection and positioning due to structural or porosity requirements.
Innovation Solution
A method using a rotating polygon scanner and a galvanometer scanner to move and focus a laser beam on battery electrodes, allowing for high-speed surface structuring by creating artificial pores in the active material coating, thereby reducing turbulence and improving cell performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional laser applications are used for surface structuring of battery electrodes, then artificial pores can be created to reduce tortuosity and improve ion transport, but the processing time becomes very long and the process becomes uneconomical
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs pulsed laser irradiation instead of continuous laser application. The laser is activated in periodic pulses during the conveyance of the electrode material, allowing for efficient material ablation while maintaining high processing speeds. This periodic action enables the creation of artificial pores with precise control over depth and distribution, resolving the contradiction between processing quality and speed.
2Productivity
If laser beam power is increased to reduce processing time, then high-speed processing becomes possible, but beam deflection and positioning challenges arise due to structural or porosity requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical beam deflection and positioning systems with a conveyor-based transport system. The electrode material is conveyed through a fixed laser beam path, and the desired pore patterns are achieved by controlling the conveyor speed and timing the laser pulses accordingly. This substitution eliminates the need for complex beam steering mechanisms while maintaining high processing speeds and precise pore placement.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method significantly reduces process time, enhances cell power and cycle stability, and allows for economical production of battery electrodes with improved ion transport and electrolyte wetting efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
A common method for reducing the turbulence of battery electrodes is laser applications in the short- or ultrashort pulse range for local ablation of the active material coating. 'Ablation' or 'ablation' refers in particular to near-surface laser ablation, in which a laser beam locally heats a material to such an extent that a plasma is created, and the material is removed or vaporized by the heating.
Implementation Method 2
A method using a rotating polygon scanner and a galvanometer scanner to move and focus a laser beam on battery electrodes
Implementation Method 3
A method using a rotating polygon scanner and a galvanometer scanner to move and focus a laser beam on battery electrodes
Implementation Method 4
The laser beam is focused on the electrode strip material, ablating the material in a heat input zone or heat-affected zone
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a method for producing a battery electrode (4) of a battery cell, comprising an electrode material (6) with a film (10) and with an active material coating (12) applied thereto, wherein the electrode material (6) is conveyed along a conveying direction (8) to a processing location, wherein at the processing location a laser beam (16) is moved over the electrode material (6) by means of a rotatable polygon scanner (18) and focused onto the electrode material (6) by means of an F-theta lens (26), wherein the active material coating (12) is locally removed at a plurality of ablation points (28) by means of the focused laser beam (16), so that the turtosity of the electrode material (6) is reduced.