Lithium Ribbon Transfer Coating for Flexible Electrode Supplementation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for supplementing electrode sheets with lithium in battery production require high consistency in lithium ribbon thickness and involve complex equipment integration, making the process inflexible and difficult to control.
Innovation Solution
A device comprising two first rolling wheels, a second rolling wheel, a lithium ribbon providing mechanism, transfer film conveying mechanisms for release agents, and an electrode sheet providing mechanism, which reduces the need for thickness consistency and simplifies the provision of release agents.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a surface of a lithium ribbon is coated with a release agent on line by means of a coating roller, then the pressed and thinned lithium ribbon adheres to a calendering roller and the thinned lithium ribbon is directly transferred to the electrode sheet, but two surfaces of the lithium ribbon must be simultaneously coated with the release agent which has extremely high requirements for the consistency of thickness of the lithium ribbon
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the release agent coating process into separate steps for each surface of the lithium ribbon. Instead of coating both surfaces simultaneously through complex integrated equipment, the release agent is applied to one surface at a time using simpler, independent coating mechanisms. This segmentation reduces the complexity of equipment integration while maintaining the ability to achieve consistent thickness coating.
Solution Approach 2:
The release agent is applied to the lithium ribbon surface in advance, before the lithium ribbon undergoes pressing and thinning processes. This preliminary coating ensures that the release agent is already in position to prevent adhesion issues during subsequent processing, eliminating the need for complex on-line coating integration and reducing requirements for thickness consistency during the coating operation.
2Productivity
If a coating mechanism for providing the lithium ribbon release agent is coupled with the rolling of two coating rollers, then the release agent can be applied on line, but the equipment integration becomes complicated and provision of the release agent becomes inflexible and uncontrollable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the release agent coating function from the complex integrated rolling coating system and implements it as a separate, independent process step. This allows the coating mechanism to operate independently without being coupled to the rolling of two coating rollers, thereby simplifying equipment integration while maintaining on-line coating capability. The release agent provision becomes more flexible and controllable as it is no longer constrained by the synchronized operation of multiple rollers.
3Manufacturing precision
If the lithium ribbon is pressed and thinned between rollers to transfer to the electrode sheet, then the lithium supplementation can be achieved, but the process requires extremely high consistency in lithium ribbon thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The release agent is applied to the lithium ribbon surface before the pressing and thinning operations. This preliminary action ensures that the lithium ribbon is already prepared for transfer to the electrode sheet, reducing the sensitivity to thickness variations during the pressing process. The pre-coated release agent compensates for thickness inconsistencies, making the overall process easier to manufacture with lower precision requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical and chemical parameters of the lithium ribbon surface by applying a release agent coating. This modification alters the surface properties to reduce adhesion to the rollers during pressing, thereby reducing the stringency of thickness consistency requirements. The release agent creates a controlled interface that allows for more flexible manufacturing conditions.
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 allows for more flexible, controlled, and simplified supplementation of lithium to electrode sheets, reducing equipment complexity and improving the consistency of the lithium supplementation process.
Implementation Method 1
a first transfer film conveying mechanism... for conveying a first transfer film carrying a first release agent and transferring the first release agent to a first surface of the lithium ribbon
Implementation Method 2
the second rolling wheel and the first rolling wheel adjacent to the second rolling wheel... for pressing the lithium ribbon with the first release agent and the second release agent transferred on the first surface and the second surface respectively
Implementation Method 3
making the lithium foil adhere to the first rolling wheel adjacent to the second rolling wheel
Data Source
AI summary
A device for supplementing an electrode sheet with lithium and a method for supplementing electrode sheet with the lithium. The device includes two first rolling wheels, a second rolling wheel, a lithium ribbon providing mechanism, a first transfer film conveying mechanism, a second transfer film conveying mechanism and an electrode sheet providing mechanism; the two first rolling wheels are opposite each other, and the second rolling wheel is adjacent to the first rolling wheel; the lithium ribbon providing mechanism is used for feeding a lithium ribbon between the second rolling wheel and the first rolling wheel; the first transfer film conveying mechanism is used for conveying a first transfer film carrying a first release agent and transferring the first release agent to the lithium ribbon; the electrode sheet providing mechanism is used for providing the electrode sheet.