Bipolar Battery Separator Porosity for Bubble Exhaustion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bipolar batteries face challenges in improving power density due to the presence of gas bubbles, which are difficult to exhaust and create dead spaces that impede ion and electron movement.
Innovation Solution
The design includes a stack of bipolar electrodes with permeable separators that allow easy exhaustion of bubbles by positioning the cathode and anode on opposite sides of the separators, enabling electrolyte penetration and bubble removal from both sides and between separators, while using sealing layers and a polymer gel electrolyte to enhance battery performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If electrolyte layers are stacked to form a bipolar battery, then the battery structure is formed, but gas bubbles are trapped creating dead spaces that impede ion and electron movement
Solution Approach 1:
The separator is designed with porous structure having specific porosity (30-70%) and pore size (1-100 μm) to enable gas bubbles to pass through during stacking. The porous material allows electrolyte penetration while facilitating bubble removal, resolving the contradiction between forming a sealed battery structure and eliminating harmful gas bubbles.
Solution Approach 2:
The separator extracts and removes gas bubbles from the electrolyte layer during the stacking process. By positioning the separator between electrodes and utilizing its permeability, bubbles are extracted from the harmful trapped state and allowed to pass through to the exterior, eliminating the dead spaces that impede ion and electron movement.
2Reliability
If separators with high permeability are used to allow electrolyte penetration, then ion conductivity is improved, but the separator structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The separator's physical parameters (porosity, pore size, thickness) are optimized within specific ranges to achieve the desired balance. By controlling porosity at 30-70% and pore size at 1-100 μm, the separator provides sufficient ion conductivity while maintaining a manageable structure that does not overly complicate the battery design.
3Power
If charging material is added to fill spaces between collector and separators, then power density is improved, but the manufacturing process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The charging material is pre-prepared and positioned to fill the peripheral spaces between the collector and separators before final assembly. This preliminary action ensures optimal power density is achieved while simplifying the manufacturing process, as the charging material is already in place and does not require complex post-assembly operations.
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
This configuration effectively minimizes dead spaces, improves power density, and enhances battery performance by facilitating the removal of bubbles, leading to better ion and electron conductivity.
Implementation Method 1
each of the plurality of separators having a permeability sufficient for an electrolyte to penetrate therein
Implementation Method 2
The separator is made of a porous material having a porosity of 30% to 70% and an average pore diameter of 1 μm to 100 μm
Data Source
AI summary
Bipolar batteries configured to minimize the introduction of gas bubbles and methods of manufacturing such batteries are taught herein. One bipolar battery includes an electrolyte layer, which includes a plurality of separators having permeability such that the electrolytes can penetrate therein, in a bipolar electrode wherein a cathode is formed at one side of a collector and an anode is formed at another side of the collector. A stack is formed by stacking the electrolyte layers upon one another. The electrolyte layer of the stack has a layer of overlayed separators.