Kind of square section liquid metal batteries with grid device to suppress instabilities of fluids

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2020203753-A1
Application number	US-201916439590-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jun 12, 2019
Priority date	Dec 25, 2018
Publication date	Jun 25, 2020
Grant date	—

Abstract

Square section liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with a grid device to suppress instabilities of fluids. The LMBs include a shell, negative current collector, negative material, metallic nets/plates, grid device, electrolyte, positive material, rectangular holes on partitions of grid device, and positive current collector. The positive material, electrolyte, and negative material are filled in the shell and automatically stratified from bottom to top according to the density from large to small. The negative current collector is linked with negative material, and the positive current collector is linked with positive material. The grid device is composed of partitions which cross each other and pass through the negative material, the electrolyte vertically in sequence, and extend inside the positive material. There are rectangular holes opened on the grid device, and the vertical height of each rectangular hole is larger than the biggest displacement of electrolyte during charging and discharging processes.

First claim

1 . A kind of square section liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids; comprising
a shell, an electrical current collector of negative electrode, negative material, metallic nets or metallic plates, a grid device, electrolyte, positive material, rectangular holes, an electrical current collector of positive electrode; wherein the positive material, the electrolyte and negative material are filled and stratified in the shell from bottom to top; the positive material and the negative material are liquid metals or alloys; the electrolyte is liquid molten salt with high temperature; the densities of three layers have the sequence of, positive material>electrolyte>negative material; two electrical current collectors and are linked with the negative material and the positive material respectively from outside of LMBs; the grid device within the shell is composed of partitions crossing each other, and the grid device passes through the negative material, the electrolyte vertically in sequence, and extends to inside of the positive material; there is no gap between the top end of grid device and negative electrical current collector and that is to avoid movement of the negative material (EVE) when electrical current density changes; the bottom end of grid device is lower than the biggest displacement of electrolyte during charging process, and it extends to the ⅔˜½ of original height of the positive material, the value only bases on initially assembled LMBs to assure the instabilities in LMBs can be suppressed by the grid device during the whole process of charging/discharging; the core of the partitions of grid device has to be metallic nets or metallic plates, and the rectangular holes are opened on the partitions of the grid device the vertical height of the rectangular holes is larger than the biggest displacement of electrolyte during charging/discharging to keep two liquid interfaces of LMBs at their own horizontal level respectively, and also to prevent the formation of a big single enclosed induced magnetic loop in the whole LMB or the formation of a medium-sized enclosed induced magnetic field loop through some rectangular holes.

2 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 1 , wherein:
the grid device is composed of partitions which are crossing each other, and the partitions are assembled to form a most uniform grid in any horizontal sections of LMBs; when the pair number of partitions of the grid device is greater than one, a special design should be introduced for easy processing and installation; when the pair number of partitions of the grid device is even, the structure of the grid device should be centrosymmetric and the grid device should be mounted by splicing because of the limitation of the rectangular holes distribution; when we place a grid device with two pairs of partitions, two-stage splicing grid device is used; when the pair number of partitions of the grid device is odd, the structure of the grid device can be axisymmetric or centrosymmetric and the grid device should be mounted also by splicing because of the limitation of the rectangular holes distribution; when placing a grid device with three pairs of partitions, three-stage splicing grid device is used.

3 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 1 , wherein:
there is no space between the grid device and side walls of LMBs, which means the partitions directly touch the inner wall of shell; the top end of the grid device is directly embedded into the negative electrical current collector, or directly contacts with the negative electrical current collector; the bottom end of the grid device is lower than the maximum displacement of the electrolyte during charging process, and it extends to the ⅔˜½ of original height of the positive material, the value only bases on initially assembled LMBs; the thickness of partitions of the grid device is 1/60˜ 1/100 of side width of the shell; the material of the grid device is electrically and magnetically insulated, and corrosion resistant.

4 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 1 , wherein:
the regulations for the rectangular holes on partitions are: firstly, the rectangular holes should be set at some special positions on partitions, right next to the inner walls of LMBs or right next to the junctions of any two partitions; secondly, there is not any enclosed cylindrical surface can continuously pass through four or even more holes to form a ring; thirdly, except the inside walls of LMBs, there is only one rectangular hole on each side edge of grid, which is enclosed by partitions or by partitions and inside wall/walls of LMBs; finally, the widths of the rectangular holes are thin and long, their widths shouldn't be greater than ⅕ of the corresponding width of that side edge of grid, which is enclosed by partitions or by partitions and inside wall/walls of LMBs, and the lower limit of widths should guarantee the smoothly flowing through by liquid metals or electrolyte.

5 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 3 , wherein:
the regulations for the rectangular holes on partitions are: firstly, the rectangular holes should be set at some special positions on partitions, right next to the inner walls of LMBs or right next to the junctions of any two partitions; secondly, there is not any enclosed cylindrical surface can continuously pass through four holes to form a ring; thirdly, except the inside walls of LMBs, there is only one rectangular hole on each side edge of grid, which is enclosed by partitions or by partitions and inside wall/walls of LMBs; finally, the widths of the rectangular holes are thin and long, their widths shouldn't be greater than ⅕ of the corresponding width of that side edge of grid, which is enclosed by partitions or by partitions and inside wall/walls of LMBs, and the lower limit of widths should be the minimal size that can guarantee the smoothly flowing through by liquid metals or electrolyte.

6 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 1 , wherein:
in these square section LMBs, the top end of the rectangular holes is higher than the largest displacement of the electrolyte when it moves up during discharging process; the bottom end of the rectangular holes should be lower than the largest displacement of the electrolyte when it moves down during charging process, and the bottom end of the rectangular holes will extend to the ⅔˜ 7/12 of original height of the positive material, the value only bases on initially assembled LMBs; when the bottom end of the grid device only extends to the ⅔ of original height of the positive material, the bottom end of the rectangular holes and the bottom end of the grid device will be at the same horizontal level.

7 . The kind of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) with square section specially includes a grid device to suppress the instabilities of fluids, according to claim 3 , wherein:
in these square section LMBs, the top end of the rectangular holes is higher than the largest displacement of the electrolyte when it moves up during discharging process; the bottom end of the rectangular holes should be lower than the largest displacement of the electrolyte when it moves down during charging process, and the bottom

Assignees

• Univ Dalian Tech

Inventors

• Li Benwen
• Liu Ke
• Chen Lu

Classifications

• Y02P70/50

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

• Y02E60/10

  Energy storage using batteries · CPC title

• H01M10/399 Primary

  Cells with molten salts · CPC title

• H01M10/0563

  Liquid materials, e.g. for Li-SOCl2 cells · CPC title

• H01M10/02 Primary

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