Thermally-drawn fiber including electrochemically active gels

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11355774-B2
Application number	US-201916361157-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 21, 2019
Priority date	Mar 22, 2018
Publication date	Jun 7, 2022
Grant date	Jun 7, 2022

Abstract

Provided herein is a fiber having a fiber body including fiber body material with a longitudinal-axis fiber body length. A plurality of gel domains is disposed within the fiber body along at least a portion of the longitudinal-axis fiber body length. Each gel domain includes a porous host matrix material and a liquid gel component that is entrapped in the molecular structure of the host matrix material and that is disposed in interstices of the host material matrix. At least two of the gel domains within the fiber body are disposed directly adjacent to each other in direct physical contact with each other. This fiber can include polymeric fiber body material and gel domains including a porous polymer host matrix material and an ionically conducting liquid solvent that is entrapped in the molecular structure of the polymer host matrix material and disposed in interstices of the polymer host material matrix.

First claim

We claim:

1. A fiber comprising:
a fiber body including a fiber body material and having a longitudinal-axis fiber body length;
a plurality of gel domains disposed within the fiber body along at least a portion of the longitudinal-axis fiber body length, each gel domain in the plurality of gel domains including a porous host matrix material and including a liquid gel component that is entrapped in molecular structure of the porous host matrix material and that is disposed in interstices of the porous host matrix material; and
at least two of the gel domains within the fiber body being disposed directly adjacent to each other in direct physical contact with each other.

2. The fiber of claim 1 wherein the fiber body material comprises a polymeric, electrically insulating material.

3. The fiber of claim 1 wherein the fiber body material includes at least one polymer selected from polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), polycarbonate (PC), liquid crystal polymer (LCP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), cyclic olefin copolymer (COC), and polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE).

4. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes a host matrix material comprising a polymer.

5. The fiber of claim 4 wherein said porous host matrix material comprises a polymer selected from polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyethylene oxide (PEO), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), polyacrylonitrile (PAN), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA).

6. The fiber of claim 4 wherein the at least one gel domain including a polymer host matrix material includes a liquid gel component that is entrapped in polymeric chains of the polymer host matrix material molecular structure.

7. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains comprises a liquid gel component including a solvent that homogeneously mixes with the porous host matrix material as a viscous liquid at temperatures above a gelation temperature characteristic for the solvent and porous host material matrix.

8. The fiber of claim 7 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes a polymer host matrix material and includes an ionic liquid selected from 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium (EMI), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium (BMI), N-Propyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium (PYR13), 1-Butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium (PYR14), Tetraethylammonium (Et4N), chloride (Cl), bromide (Br), tetrafluoroborate (BF4), hexafluorophosphate (PF6), bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (FSI), and bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (TFSI).

9. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes a polymer host matrix material and includes a liquid gel component selected from ethylene carbonate/propylene carbonate (EC/PC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), diethyl carbonate (DEC), fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC), ethyl methyl carbonate (EMC), butyrolactone (BL), and vinylene carbonate (VC).

10. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes solid particles dispersed in the porous host matrix material.

11. The fiber of claim 10 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes electrically conducting solid particles dispersed in the porous host matrix material.

12. The fiber of claim 11 wherein the electrically conducting solid particles comprise carbon black particles.

13. The fiber of claim 10 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes activated carbon particles dispersed in the porous host matrix material.

14. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes solid particles selected from activated carbon particles, carbon black particles, carbon nanotubes, graphene particles, silicon carbide particles, titanium carbide particles, tungsten carbide particles, manganese oxide (MnO 2 ) particles, titanium oxide particles, and silicon oxide particles.

15. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes a salt.

16. The fiber of claim 15 wherein the salt includes at least one of LiX, where X=I, Cl, Br, ClO 4 , CF 3 SO 3 , PF 6 , BF 4 , or AsF 6 ; NaX, where X=I, Cl, Br, ClO 4 , CF 3 SO 3 , PF 6 , BF 4 , or AsF 6 ; MgX where X=(CF 3 SO 3 ) 2 or (AlCl 3 -xRxR′) 2 wherein R, R′=an akyl group; and AlX, where X=(CF 3 SO 3 ) 3 or Cl 3 /[EMIm]Cl.

17. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes an electrolytic fluid.

18. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes an ionic species selected from lithium-nickel cobalt manganese oxide (NMC), lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), lithium manganese oxide (LMO), lithium nickel cobalt aluminum oxide (NCA), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), lithium iron sulphate fluoride (LFSF), lithium titanium sulfide (LTS), sodium vanadium phosphate fluoride (NVSF), sodium iron phosphate (NFP), magnesium cobalt oxide (MCO), magnesium scandium selenide (MSS), magnesium indium sulfide (MIS), aluminum vanadium oxide (AVO), iron fluoride (FeFx), cobalt fluoride (CoFx), iron chloride (FeClx), sulfur (S), lithium sulfide (Li2Sx), selenium (Se), Te (tellurium), iodine (I), lithium iodide (LiI), and carbon.

19. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains comprises an ionic species selected from lithium, lithium titanate (LTO), sodium, magnesium, aluminum, graphite, CNT, graphene, silicon, germanium, tin, and lithium oxide.

20. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at least one gel domain in the plurality of gel domains includes solid electrically conducting particles dispersed in the porous host matrix material, and includes ionically conducting fluid disposed in interstices of the porous host matrix material.

21. The fiber of claim 1 wherein at a common temperature, the fiber body material has a viscosity between about 10 4 Poise and about 10 7 Poise and each gel domain in the plurality of gel domains has a viscosity between about 10 3 Poise and about 10 5 Poise.

22. The fiber of claim 1 further comprising at least one polymeric electrical contact, each polymeric electrical contact disposed in contact with a gel domain and extending the fiber body length.

23. The fiber of claim 22 further comprising at least one electrical current conductor, each electrical current conductor disposed in electrical contact with a polymeric electrical contact and extending the fiber body length.

24. The fiber of claim 23 wherein each electrical current conductor comprises a wire selected from tungsten wire, Cu wire, Al wire, Ti wire, Ni wire, and stainless steel wire.

25. The fiber of claim 1 wherein the plurality of gel domains includes an electrolytic gel domain comprising an ionically conducting gel component, the electrolytic gel domain being disposed within the fiber body in direct contact with each of two electrochemically active electrode gel domains, each electrochemically active electrode gel domain comprising an electrically conducting gel component and an ionically conducting gel component.

26. The fiber of claim 1 wherein the plurality of gel domains includes an electrolytic gel domain comprising an ionically conducting gel component, the electrolytic gel domain being disposed within the fiber body in direct contact with an electrochemically acti

Assignees

• Massachusetts Inst Technology

Inventors

• Lee Jung Tae
• Grena Benjamin Jean-Baptiste
• Khudiyev Tural
• Hou Chong
• Fink Yoel

Classifications

• H01M4/485

  of mixed oxides or hydroxides for inserting or intercalating light metals, e.g. LiTi2O4 or LiTi2OxFy (H01M4/505, H01M4/525 take precedence) · CPC title

• H01M10/02 Primary

  Details (of electrodes H01M4/00; of non-active parts H01M50/00) · CPC title

• Y02E60/10

  Energy storage using batteries · CPC title

• H01M10/0565

  Polymeric materials, e.g. gel-type or solid-type · CPC title

• H01M4/622 Primary

  being polymers · CPC title