Battery With Enhanced Resistance to Dendrite Formation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2019131593-A1
Application number	US-201816233275-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Dec 27, 2018
Priority date	Nov 16, 2016
Publication date	May 2, 2019
Grant date	—

Abstract

A battery includes a case having a feedthrough port, a feedthrough assembly disposed in the feedthrough port, and a cell stack disposed within the case. The feedthrough port includes an inner conductor and an insulator core separating the inner conductor from the case. The cell stack includes an anode, a cathode, and a separator insulating the anode from the cathode, wherein the anode and cathode are offset from one another. An insulating boot surrounding the cell stack insulates the cell stack from the case. The insulating boot has an opening configured to receive therein the feedthrough assembly, which may include overmolded insulation. The interior surfaces and interior walls of the battery case may be thermal spray-coated with a dielectric material to prevent lithium dendrite formation between cathode and anode surfaces.

First claim

1 . (canceled)

2 . A battery, comprising:
a case having a first cover, a second cover welded to the first cover, an inner surface, and a layer of a ceramic dielectric material disposed by thermal spraying on at least a portion of the inner surface of the case; a cell stack disposed within the case, the cell stack including
an anode having a main anode body and an anode tab projecting from the main anode body;
a cathode having a main cathode body and a cathode tab projecting from the main cathode body; and
one or more separator layers disposed between the main anode body and the main cathode body and electrically insulating the anode from the cathode.

3 . The battery as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the cell stack is positioned in the case so that the cathode tab opposes the layer of dielectric material.

4 . The battery as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the ceramic dielectric material is a ceramic oxide.

5 . The battery as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the ceramic oxide is selected from the group consisting of aluminum oxide, titanium oxide and combinations thereof.

6 . The battery as claimed in claim 5 , wherein the ceramic oxide comprises aluminum oxide, and the layer of the dielectric material has a thickness of about 0.004 inches.

7 . The battery as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the layer of the dielectric material has a thickness of no more than about 0.03 inches.

8 . The battery as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the layer of the dielectric material has a thickness of between about 0.002 inches and about 0.012 inches.

9 . The battery as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the layer of ceramic dielectric material is applied to an entirety of the inner surface of the case.

10 . A method of manufacturing an electrochemical cell, the method comprising:
providing a case for the electrochemical cell, the case having a first cover, a second cover and an inner surface; forming a layer of an insulative coating on at least a portion of the inner surface of the case by thermal spraying a ceramic dielectric material on the portion of the inner surface of the case; forming an anode by applying an anode active material to an anode current collector, the anode current collector having a main anode body and an anode tab projecting from the main anode body, the anode active material being applied to opposite sides of the main anode body; forming a cathode by applying a cathode active material to a cathode current collector, the cathode current collector having a main cathode body and a cathode tab projecting from the main cathode body, the cathode active material being applied to opposite sides of the main cathode body; preparing a cell stack by stacking together the anode, the cathode and one or more separator layers disposed between the main anode body and the main cathode body and electrically insulating the anode from the cathode; inserting the cell stack into the first cover; and assembling the second cover over the cell stack and welding the second cover to the first cover to form a completed electrochemical cell.

11 . The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the thermal spraying step includes using high-velocity oxygen-fuel (HVOF) spraying to form the layer of the insulative coating on the portion of the inner surface of the case.

12 . The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the thermal spraying step is performed by a process selected from the group consisting of air plasma thermal spraying, low pressure plasma spraying, high velocity oxygen fuel sputtering, electron beam physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, electric arc spraying, twin-wire arc spraying and plasma spraying.

13 . The method as claimed in claim 10 , further comprising applying an inter-metallic bonding film between the inner surface of the case and the ceramic dielectric material.

14 . The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the inter-metallic bonding film is a layer of aluminum.

15 . The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the cell stack is positioned in the case so that the cathode tab opposes the ceramic dielectric material.

16 . The method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the ceramic dielectric material is a ceramic oxide.

17 . The method as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the ceramic oxide is selected from the group consisting of aluminum oxide, titanium oxide and combinations thereof.

18 . The method as claimed in claim 17 , wherein the layer of the dielectric material has a thickness of between about 0.002 inches and about 0.012 inches.

19 . The method as claimed in claim 18 , wherein the ceramic oxide comprises aluminum oxide, and the layer of the dielectric material has a thickness of about 0.004 inches.

Assignees

• Pacesetter Inc

Inventors

• Brooks Iii Del Charles
• Hallmark Christopher
• Duggan John
• Armstrong Jeffrey

Classifications

• H01M4/131 Primary

  Electrodes based on mixed oxides or hydroxides, or on mixtures of oxides or hydroxides, e.g. LiCoOx · CPC title

• H01M4/133

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

• C01G31/02

  Oxides · CPC title

• C01G5/00

  Compounds of silver · CPC title

• H01M50/176

  for prismatic or rectangular cells (H01M50/181 takes precedence) · CPC title