Long life sealed alkaline secondary batteries

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12355042-B2
Application number	US-202418755136-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2024
Priority date	Dec 29, 2017
Publication date	Jul 8, 2025
Grant date	Jul 8, 2025

Abstract

In an aspect, provided is an alkaline rechargeable battery comprising: i) a battery container sealed against the release of gas up to at least a threshold gas pressure, ii) a volume of an aqueous alkaline electrolyte at least partially filling the container to au electrolyte level; iii) a positive electrode containing positive active material and at least partially submerged in the electrolyte, iv) an iron negative electrode at least partially submerged in the electrolyte, the iron negative electrode comprising iron active material; v) a separator at least partially submerged in the electrolyte provided between the positive electrode and the negative electrode; vi) an auxiliary oxygen gas recombination electrode electrically connected to the iron negative electrode by a first electronic component, ionically connected to the electrolyte by a first some pathway, and exposed to a gas headspace above the electrolyte level by a first gas pathway.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A rechargeable battery comprising:
a battery container;
an electrolyte in the battery container;
a positive electrode comprising positive active material, the positive electrode operationally connected to the electrolyte in the battery container;
an iron negative electrode comprising an iron active material, the iron negative electrode operationally connected to the electrolyte in the battery container;
a separator disposed in the electrolyte in the battery container with the separator and the electrolyte between the positive electrode and the iron negative electrode; and
a sulfide-source material in a solid form configured to be electrochemically reducible, in a charge mode of the rechargeable battery, to sulfide releasable into the electrolyte in the battery container.

2. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein the sulfide-source material is in the iron negative electrode.

3. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein the sulfide-source material is about 0.1 wt % to 10 wt % of the iron active material.

4. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , further comprising a reservoir, wherein the sulfide-source material is disposed in the reservoir.

5. The rechargeable battery of claim 4 , wherein the reservoir is outside of the iron negative electrode and the sulfide-source material in the reservoir is electrically connected to the iron negative electrode.

6. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , further comprising a sulfide-containing auxiliary electrode, wherein the sulfide-containing auxiliary electrode is electrically connected to the iron negative electrode.

7. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein the sulfide-source material comprises one or more metal sulfides, one or more a sub-oxides of one or more metal sulfides, a solid solution of one or more metal sulfides and one or more oxides or hydroxides, one or more sulfosalt minerals, one or more metalloid sulfides, one or more nonmetal sulfides, or a combination thereof.

8. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein the sulfide concentration in the electrolyte is about 0.01 micromoles per liter to about 700 micromoles per liter.

9. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein the sulfide-source material is in contact with the electrolyte and electrically connected to the positive electrode.

10. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , wherein, in the charge mode of the rechargeable battery, sulfide is releasable from the sulfide-source material into the electrolyte via electrochemical reduction and dissolution.

11. The rechargeable battery of claim 1 , further comprising a sulfide detector, wherein the sulfide detector is configured to detect sulfide concentration in the electrolyte.

12. A method of fabricating a rechargeable battery, the method comprising:
positioning a positive electrode and an iron negative electrode in contact with an electrolyte in a battery container; and
contacting the iron negative electrode with a sulfide-source material in solid form, the sulfide-source material in solid form electrochemically reducible, in a charge mode of the rechargeable battery, to sulfide releasable into the electrolyte in the battery container.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein contacting the iron negative electrode with the sulfide-source material includes adding the sulfide-source material to the iron negative electrode before positioning the iron negative electrode in contact with the electrolyte in the battery container.

14. The method of claim 12 , further comprising arranging a separator in the electrolyte with the separator disposed between the positive electrode and the iron negative electrode in the battery container.

15. The method of claim 12 , further comprising adding a sulfide-containing solution into the electrolyte.

16. A method of operating an energy storage system, the method comprising:
charging a rechargeable battery including a solid form of a sulfide-source material, an iron electrode, and an electrode, the iron electrode including an iron active material, and the electrode including a positive active material, wherein charging the rechargeable battery electrochemically reduces the solid form of the sulfide-source material to sulfide released into an electrolyte operationally connected to the iron electrode and a positive active material; and
discharging the rechargeable battery, wherein discharging the rechargeable battery electrochemically oxidizes the sulfide to sulfur.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein charging the rechargeable battery includes dissolving the sulfide in the electrolyte.

18. The method of claim 16 , further comprising detecting concentration of the sulfide in the electrolyte and, based on the concentration of the sulfide detected as below a predetermined threshold, delivering a quantity of the sulfide to the electrolyte.

Assignees

• Form Energy Inc

Inventors

• Pham Ai Quoc
• Nijhawan Sandeep
• Manohar Aswin K
• Van Galloway Kevin
• Yang Chenguang
• Benson Eric E
• Mchardy Lang
• Rackers Tim

Classifications

• H01M50/116

  characterised by the material · CPC title

• H01M2004/028

  Positive electrodes · CPC title

• H01M2004/027

  Negative electrodes · CPC title

• H01M10/4242

  Regeneration of electrolyte or reactants · CPC title

• H01M10/24

  Alkaline accumulators · CPC title