Method for battery tab attachment to a self-standing electrode

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019088925-A1
Application number	US-201816123935-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 6, 2018
Priority date	Sep 15, 2017
Publication date	Mar 21, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

The present disclosure is directed to methods of securing battery tab structures to binderless, collectorless self-standing electrodes, comprising electrode active material and carbon nanotubes and no foil-based collector, and the resulting battery-tab secured electrodes. Such methods and the resulting battery tab-secured electrodes may facilitate the use of such composites in battery and power applications.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A self-standing electrode comprising:
a body comprising a composite material having electrode active material particles in a three-dimensional cross-linked network of carbon nanotubes; a member extending outward from the body, the member comprising the composite material; and a battery tab secured to the member.

2 . The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the electrode active material is selected from graphite, hard carbon, silicon, silicon oxides, lithium metal oxides, lithium metal, and lithium iron phosphate.

3 . The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the battery tab secured to the member comprises a single sheet of metal that is in contact with a first face and a second face of the member.

4 . The electrode of claim 3 , wherein a first portion of the single sheet of metal that is in contact with the first face of the member is connected to a second portion of the single sheet of metal that is in contact with the second face of the member via one or more welds, rivets, staples, clamps or clips.

5 . The electrode of claim 1 , wherein the battery tab secured to the member comprises two sheets of a metal that are in contact with a first face and a second face of the member, and that are connected to each other via one or more welds, rivets, staples, clamps or clips.

6 . A method of making a self-standing electrode, the method comprising:
aerosolizing or fluidizing an electrode active material to produce an aerosolized or fluidized electrode active material; and co-depositing the aerosolized or fluidized electrode active material and carbon nanotubes to form a self-standing electrode; and
securing a battery tab to the electrode such that each of at least a first face and a second face of the electrode is in contact with the battery tab.

7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the securing comprises folding a single sheet of metal over the electrode such that the single sheet is in contact with at least the first face and the second face of the electrode.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the second face is opposite the first face.

9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the securing further comprises connecting the portions of the single sheet that are in contact with the at least two faces of the electrode with each other via one or more welds or rivets through the electrode.

10 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the co-depositing the aerosolized active material and carbon nanotubes comprises:
contacting the aerosolized electrode active material powder with the carbon nanotubes in a carrier gas to form a mixture of the carbon nanotubes and the aerosolized electrode active material powder; collecting the mixture on the porous surface; and removing the carrier gas.

11 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the overall thickness of the electrode is about 10 μm to about 5000 μm.

12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the overall thickness of the electrode is about 20 μm to about 100 μm.

13 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the securing comprises:
contacting each of two faces of the electrode with a respective metal sheet; and connecting the respective metal sheets to one another via one or more welds, rivets, staples, clamps or clips.

14 . The method of claim 6 , further comprising the step of,
before securing the battery tab to the electrode,
shaping the self-standing electrode to form a body and a member extending outward from the body, and
wherein the battery tab is secured to the member.

15 . The method of claim 6 , wherein the co-depositing comprises co-depositing the aerosolized or fluidized electrode active material and carbon nanotubes onto a porous surface to form a binderless self-standing electrode.

16 . A self-standing electrode comprising:
a self-standing body that is free of a binder and comprises a composite material having electrode active material particles in a three-dimensional cross-linked network of carbon nanotubes, wherein the self-standing body includes a first face and a second face opposite the first face; and a battery tab secured to the self-standing body that comprises:
a body;
a first leg extending from the body of the battery tab; and
a second leg extending from the body of the battery tab, wherein the self-standing electrode body is positioned between the first leg and the second leg, and the first leg contacts the first face of the self-standing body and the second leg contacts the second face of the self-standing body.

17 . The self-standing electrode of claim 16 wherein the first leg covers less than 50% of the surface area of the first face of the self-standing body, and the second leg covers less than 50% of the surface area of the second face of the self-standing body.

18 . The self-standing electrode of claim 17 wherein the first leg covers less than 33% of the surface area of the first face of the self-standing body, and the second leg covers less than 33% of the surface area of the second face of the self-standing body.

19 . The self-standing electrode of claim 18 wherein the first leg covers less than 25% of the surface area of the first face of the self-standing body, and the second leg covers less than 25% of the surface area of the second face of the self-standing body.

20 . The self-standing electrode of claim 16 wherein the first leg and the second leg each extends outward from the body of the battery tab, at least a first connection extends from the first leg and through the self-standing body to the second leg, and a first portion of the self-standing body is positioned between the body of the battery tab and the first connection.

21 . The self-standing electrode of claim 20 wherein a second connection extends from the first leg and through the self-standing body to the second leg, and a second portion of the self-standing body is positioned between the first connection and the second connection.

22 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 wherein the first connection and the second connection are spot welds.

23 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 wherein the first connection and the second connection are ultrasonic welds.

24 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 , wherein the tab is attached directly to the self-standing body.

25 . The self-standing electrode of claim 24 , wherein the tab is attached perpendicular to the edge of the main body of the electrode.

26 . The self-standing electrode of claim 24 , wherein the tab is attached at an angle to the edge.

27 . The self-standing electrode of claim 24 , wherein the tab comprises a single sheet of metal folded over the electrode.

28 . The self-standing electrode of claim 24 , wherein the tab comprises two sheets, each placed on an opposite face of the electrode.

29 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 , wherein the tab is attached to a protrusion from the body, the protrusion being wider than the tab or of about the same width as the tab.

30 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 , wherein the tab is attached to a protrusion from the body, the protrusion being narrower than the tab.

31 . The self-standing electrode of claim 21 , wherein the tab is folded over an edge of the main body of the electrode, or a protrusion therefrom, and the tab is secured by welds, rivets, staples, clamps, or c

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Harutyunyan Avetik
• Kuznetsov Oleg

Classifications

• B82Y30/00

  Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites · CPC title

• H01M4/625

  Carbon or graphite · CPC title

• H01M4/362

  Composites · CPC title

• H01M4/134

  Electrodes based on metals, Si or alloys · CPC title

• H01M4/136

  Electrodes based on inorganic compounds other than oxides or hydroxides, e.g. sulfides, selenides, tellurides, halogenides or LiCoFy · CPC title