Composite carbon materials comprising lithium alloying electrochemical modifiers

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10454103-B2
Application number	US-201715675462-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 11, 2017
Priority date	Mar 14, 2013
Publication date	Oct 22, 2019
Grant date	Oct 22, 2019

Abstract

The present application is generally directed to composites comprising a hard carbon material and an electrochemical modifier. The composite materials find utility in any number of electrical devices, for example, in lithium ion batteries. Methods for making the disclosed composite materials are also disclosed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for preparing a silicon-carbon composite, the method comprising contacting an amorphous activated porous carbon material having a total pore volume ranging from 0.6 cc/g to 1.0 cc/g with a gas comprising silane at a temperature of 450° C., thereby depositing elemental silicon in a pore of the porous carbon material to form the silicon-carbon composite.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the gas comprising silane further comprises nitrogen.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane for a period of time ranging from 5 minutes to 5 hours.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane in a kiln or fluidized bed.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the kiln is a rotary kiln.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane at a pressure below atmospheric pressure.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material has a fractional pore surface area of pores at or below 100 nm that comprises at least 50% of the total pore surface area.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material has a fractional pore surface area of pores at or below 100 nm that comprises at least 90% of the total pore surface area.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material comprises particles having a median particle diameter ranging from 1 micron to 10 microns.

10. A method for preparing a silicon-carbon composite, the method comprising contacting an amorphous activated porous carbon material having a total pore volume ranging from 0.6 cc/g to 1.0 cc/g with a gas comprising silane at a temperature between 450° C. and 500° C., thereby depositing elemental silicon in a pore of the porous carbon material to form the silicon-carbon composite.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the gas comprising silane further comprises nitrogen.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane for a period of time ranging from 5 minutes to 5 hours.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane in a kiln or fluidized bed.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the kiln is a rotary kiln.

15. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material is contacted with the gas comprising silane at a pressure below atmospheric pressure.

16. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material has a fractional pore surface area of pores at or below 100 nm that comprises at least 50% of the total pore surface area.

17. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material has a fractional pore surface area of pores at or below 100 nm that comprises at least 90% of the total pore surface area.

18. The method of claim 10 , wherein the amorphous activated porous carbon material comprises particles having a median particle diameter ranging from 1 micron to 10 microns.

Assignees

• Group14 Technologies Inc

Inventors

• Sakshaug Avery J
• Thompkins Leah A
• Costantino Henry R
• Feaver Aaron M

Classifications

• H01M4/362

  Composites · CPC title

• H01M4/1393

  of electrodes based on carbonaceous material, e.g. graphite-intercalation compounds or CFx · CPC title

• H01M4/587

  for inserting or intercalating light metals · CPC title

• H01M4/0471

  involving thermal treatment, e.g. firing, sintering, backing particulate active material, thermal decomposition, pyrolysis · CPC title

• H01M4/387

  Tin or alloys based on tin · CPC title