Method of manufacturing an electrochemical cell

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10797301-B2
Application number	US-201816131853-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 14, 2018
Priority date	Jan 4, 2018
Publication date	Oct 6, 2020
Grant date	Oct 6, 2020

Abstract

In a method of manufacturing an electrochemical cell, a porous or non-porous electrically conductive metal substrate may be provided. A conformal metal chalcogenide layer may be formed on a surface of the metal substrate. The metal substrate with the conformal metal chalcogenide layer may be immersed in a nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution comprising a lithium salt dissolved in a polar aprotic organic solvent. An electrical potential may be established between the metal substrate and a counter electrode immersed in the nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution such that lithium ions in the electrolyte solution are reduced to metallic lithium and deposited on the surface of the metal substrate over the metal chalcogenide layer to form a conformal lithium metal layer on the surface of the metal substrate over the metal chalcogenide layer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of manufacturing an electrochemical cell, the method comprising:
providing a porous or non-porous electrically conductive metal substrate;
forming a conformal metal chalcogenide layer on a surface of the metal substrate;
immersing the metal substrate with the conformal metal chalcogenide layer in a nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution comprising a lithium salt dissolved in a polar aprotic organic solvent; and
establishing an electrical potential between the metal substrate and a counter electrode immersed in the nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution such that lithium ions in the electrolyte solution are reduced to metallic lithium and deposited on the surface of the metal substrate over the metal chalcogenide layer to form a conformal lithium metal layer on the surface of the metal substrate over the metal chalcogenide layer.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal substrate is non-porous and includes a first major surface and an opposite second major surface, and wherein the metal chalcogenide layer and the overlying lithium metal layer are formed on at least one of the first or second major surfaces of the metal substrate.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal substrate is porous and includes a first side, an opposite second side, and a plurality of pores defined by wall surfaces extending between the first and second sides of the metal substrate, and wherein the metal chalcogenide layer and the overlying lithium metal layer are formed on the first and second sides of the metal substrate and on the wall surfaces extending between the first and second sides of the metal substrate, without blocking the pores of the metal substrate.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the lithium salt comprises at least one of LiClO 4 , LiAlCl 4 , LiI, LiBr, LiSCN, LiBF 4 , LiB(C 6 H 5 ) 4 , LiAsF 6 , LiCF 3 SO 3 , LiN(CF 3 SO 2 ) 2 , LiN(SO 2 F) 2 , LiBOB, LiDFOB, LiPF 6 , LiNO 3 , Li 2 SO 4 , or LiCl.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the polar aprotic organic solvent comprises at least one of a cyclic carbonate, an acyclic carbonate, an aliphatic acyclic ester, an aliphatic carboxylic ester, a γ-lactone, an acyclic ether, or a cyclic ether.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution has a lithium salt concentration in the range of 0.1 M to 6 M.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the electrical potential between the metal substrate and the counter electrode is established by applying an electric current to the counter electrode in the range of one μA/cm 2 to one A/cm 2 .

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the conformal lithium metal layer has a thickness in the range of one micrometer to 1000 micrometers.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the counter electrode comprises lithium, a host material intercalated with lithium, a lithium alloy, or a combination thereof.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein, when the electrical potential is established between the metal substrate and the counter electrode, lithium ions from the counter electrode dissolve in the nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein, when the electrical potential is established between the metal substrate and the counter electrode, the lithium ions from the counter electrode dissolve in the nonaqueous liquid electrolyte solution at a rate equal to that at which metallic lithium is deposited on the surface of the metal substrate over the metal chalcogenide layer.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal chalcogenide layer comprises a metal oxide, a metal sulfide, a metal selenide, or a combination thereof.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal substrate comprises copper, and wherein the metal chalcogenide layer comprises copper oxide, copper sulfide, copper selenide, or a combination thereof.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal chalcogenide layer comprises a metal oxide, and wherein the metal chalcogenide layer is formed on the surface of the metal substrate by heating the metal substrate in air such that gaseous oxygen chemically reacts with and bonds to the surface of the metal substrate.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein the metal chalcogenide layer comprises a metal sulfide or a metal selenide, and wherein the metal chalcogenide layer is formed on the surface of the metal substrate by enclosing the metal substrate in a chamber, heating a volume of solid phase sulfur or selenium to release a volume of gaseous sulfur or selenium therefrom, and then exposing the surface of the metal substrate to the volume of gaseous sulfur or selenium within the chamber such that the gaseous sulfur or selenium chemically reacts with and bonds to the surface of the metal substrate.

Assignees

• Gm Global Tech Operations Llc

Inventors

• Dai Fang
• Chen Shuru
• He Meinan
• Cai Mei

Classifications

• Y02P70/50

  Manufacturing or production processes characterised by the final manufactured product · CPC title

• H01M4/667

  in the form of layers, e.g. coatings · CPC title

• H01M10/052

  Li-accumulators · CPC title

• H01M10/0585

  of accumulators having only flat construction elements, i.e. flat positive electrodes, flat negative electrodes and flat separators · CPC title

• H01M10/0525

  Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries · CPC title