Lithium Metal Anode Structure Without Cladding for Better Cycle Life
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Solution Overview
Problem
Lithium secondary cells with metal anodes face challenges in achieving good cycle characteristics and cost reduction, particularly due to the use of cladding materials that increase costs and affect performance.
Innovation Solution
A metal anode is developed with a solid-dissolved lithium active layer and a base material layer, where the base material includes metals like Al, Si, or Sn, and the base material layer has a controlled standard deviation and Vickers hardness, eliminating the need for a cladding material by integrating the active and current collector functions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a cladding material is used to join the base layer with the aluminum layer, then the structural integrity and lithium alloying capability are improved, but the production cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the cladding material layer entirely, extracting the problematic intermediate layer that caused both cost increase and performance issues. The base layer itself is designed to directly form the metal anode structure, eliminating the need for additional joining layers while maintaining structural integrity through optimized base layer composition and processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the functions of the base layer and the metal anode into a single integrated structure. The base layer material itself serves as the active metal anode material, combining the structural support function and the lithium alloying function into one component, thereby eliminating the cladding material and reducing production costs.
2Reliability
If a cladding material is used to join the base layer with the aluminum layer, then the structural integrity is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cladding material layer is completely removed from the structure. The base layer is designed to directly serve as the metal anode, extracting the unnecessary intermediate joining layer and simplifying the overall device structure while maintaining structural integrity through optimized base layer properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The base layer is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support, serves as the active metal anode material, and enables lithium alloying. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate cladding layers, reducing device complexity while maintaining structural integrity.
3Ease of manufacture
If the base material layer has a large standard deviation of length from the second surface to the active layer, then the manufacturing tolerance is relaxed, but the discharge capacity retention rate decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention optimizes the thickness and uniformity parameters of the base layer through controlled processing conditions. By adjusting processing parameters such as rolling pressure, temperature, and duration, the base layer achieves a standard deviation of length of 10 μm or less, ensuring uniform lithium distribution and high discharge capacity retention while maintaining manufacturability.
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 solution provides a metal anode with improved cycle characteristics and reduced production costs by eliminating the need for cladding materials, ensuring stable lithium ion intercalation and deintercalation without material deviation, thus enhancing the discharge capacity retention rate.
Implementation Method 1
an active layer formed of lithium and a base material in which the lithium is solid-dissolved
Data Source
AI summary
A metal anode is provided, including: an active layer formed of lithium and a base material in which the lithium is solid-dissolved; and a base material layer formed of the base material, in which the metal anode has a plate shape including a first surface and a second surface facing each other, the active layer is present on a side of the first surface, the base material layer is present on a side of the second surface, the active layer and the base material layer are laminated in contact with each other, the base material includes one or more metals selected from the group consisting of Al, Si, Sn, and Pb, and the base material layer has a standard deviation of length, which is from the second surface to the active layer, of 0 or greater and 10 or less.