Electrode Fluid Conducting Structures for Battery Wetting
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Solution Overview
Problem
The challenge in manufacturing high-performance energy storage devices lies in ensuring even electrolyte distribution between electrodes, which is currently achieved through a time-consuming and costly process involving multiple vacuum filling steps and manual labor, leading to inefficient cell production and potential premature failure.
Innovation Solution
Introducing fluid conducting structures on the surface of electrolyte battery components, with channels deepened over 50% of the active layer thickness, to facilitate homogeneous and rapid electrolyte wetting, reducing production time and improving cell performance and longevity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If multiple vacuum filling steps and manual labor are used to ensure even electrolyte distribution, then electrolyte distribution uniformity is improved, but production time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Fluid conducting structures are pre-introduced into the electrode or separator during manufacturing, creating built-in channels that guide electrolyte distribution. This preliminary structuring eliminates the need for time-consuming multiple vacuum filling steps and manual intervention, as the electrolyte naturally flows through the pre-designed channels to achieve uniform distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The fluid conducting structures act as an intermediary mechanism between the electrolyte reservoir and the electrode active material. These structures mediate the electrolyte distribution process by providing dedicated pathways that ensure even penetration without requiring complex external equipment or manual operations.
2Speed
If electrode thickness is reduced to enable high current draw, then charging and discharging speed is improved, but mechanical strength and handling difficulty worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The electrode is designed with locally differentiated properties: thin active material layers for high performance in charging/discharging, while the fluid conducting structures provide localized mechanical support. This allows different regions of the electrode to serve different functions - the active material provides electrochemical performance while the structured channels provide mechanical integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The electrode combines thin active material layers with integrated fluid conducting structures to create a composite architecture. This composite design enables the thin electrode to maintain adequate mechanical strength through the structural support of the channels while preserving the high surface area-to-volume ratio needed for rapid charging and discharging.
3Speed
If fluid conducting structures are introduced to accelerate electrolyte transport, then wetting speed is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fluid conducting structures serve multiple functions simultaneously: they accelerate electrolyte transport through capillary action, provide mechanical support to the thin electrode, and create defined pathways for electrolyte distribution. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, thereby limiting the increase in overall device complexity while achieving improved electrolyte transport.
Solution Approach 2:
The electrode or separator is designed with porous structures that inherently provide fluid conduction pathways. This approach uses the natural capillary properties of porous materials to accelerate electrolyte transport without requiring complex external pumping or delivery systems, thus improving wetting speed while maintaining relatively simple device architecture.
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 approach enables faster, more uniform wetting of electrodes, extends cell service life, and enhances electrochemical cyclability, particularly at high charge-discharge rates, while reducing mechanical stresses and internal resistance, thus improving battery reliability and efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
fluid conducting structures with channels that are deepened over 50%, preferably at least two thirds, particularly preferably at least 75% of the thickness of the active layer up to a substrate support
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an electrolyte battery electrode component having a layer whose surface adjoins electrolyte in the battery and which is provided with a fluid-conducting channel structure. Here, it is provided that the fluid-conducting structure has channels having channel depths in the range from 10 to 200 µm and/or at least 50% of the thickness of the active layer.