Polymer based current collector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025070188-A1
Application number	US-202418793409-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Aug 2, 2024
Priority date	Aug 24, 2023
Publication date	Feb 27, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A battery cell with a polymer based current collector is disclosed. The battery cell includes a battery electrode and a conductive polymer based current collector located on the battery electrode comprised of a conductive polymer layer. The polymer is conductive in the thickness direction between an outer surface of the polymer based current collector and the battery electrode during normal battery operation of the battery cell. The polymer can be an inherently conductive polymer or a polymer composite formed from an insulating polymer material and conductive particles. The conductive polymer based current collector is configured to become less conductive at least in the thickness direction when at least one of heated beyond a melting point associated with the polymer based current collector or stretched beyond a yield point of the conductive polymer based current collector.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A battery cell comprising:
a battery electrode; and a conductive polymer based current collector located on the battery electrode comprising a conductive polymer layer, wherein the polymer based current collector is conductive in a thickness direction between the polymer based current collector and the battery electrode during normal battery operation of the battery cell, and wherein the conductive polymer based current collector is configured to become less conductive at least in the thickness direction when at least one of heated beyond a melting point associated with the conductive polymer based current collector or stretched beyond a yield point of the conductive polymer based current collector.

2 . The battery cell of claim 1 , wherein the polymer based current collector includes the conductive polymer layer and at least one additional material layer, the polymer layer is a conductive support layer and the at least one additional material layer includes a conductive permeability prevention layer on the conductive polymer layer configured to at least limit water vapor and oxygen transfer into the battery cell.

3 . The battery cell of claim 2 , wherein the at least one additional material layer further includes a conductive inner electrode adhesion layer configured to facilitate adhesion between the battery electrode and the conductive support layer.

4 . The battery cell of claim 2 , wherein the conductive support layer is a polymer composite material comprising an insulative polymer material and conductive particles in an amount sufficient to render the polymer composite material conductive in the thickness direction between the polymer based current collector and the battery electrode during normal battery operation of the battery cell.

5 . The battery cell of claim 4 , wherein the conductive particles comprise a range of 20-50% wt carbon.

6 . The battery cell of claim 2 , wherein the conductive permeability prevention layer is a different conductive polymer material relative to the conductive support layer between 10 to 50 μm in thickness selected from the group consisting of: EVA, PVOH, and PVDC.

7 . The battery cell of claim 6 , wherein the conductive polymer based current collector is formed using blown film extrusion.

8 . The battery cell of claim 2 , wherein the conductive permeability prevention layer is a layer of metal between 20 to 80 nm in thickness.

9 . The battery cell of claim 8 , wherein the conductive polymer based current collector is formed using a vapor deposition process selected from the group consisting of: physical vapor deposition and chemical vapor deposition.

10 . The battery cell of claim 1 , wherein the conductive polymer layer is a single layer of polymer and conductive particles in an amount sufficient to render the single layer of polymer conductive in the thickness direction, and the single layer of polymer has a low WVTR and OTR of <5 gm/100 square inch/24 hours and 5 cc/100 square inch/24 hours respectively for a 1 mil thick film.

11 . The battery cell of claim 1 , wherein the polymer based current collector has a measured sheet resistance, in a range of thickness between 1 to 100 μm, of between 0.1 kΩ and 1000 kΩ.

12 . The battery cell of claim 1 , wherein the polymer based current collector is configured to become insulating in the thickness direction when the polymer based current collector is elongated past the yield point of the polymer.

13 . The battery cell of claim 1 , wherein the battery electrode is a cathode electrode or an anode electrode of the battery cell.

14 . A conductive polymer based current collector for a battery cell comprising:
a conductive polymer layer that is conductive in a thickness direction during normal battery operation of the battery cell, wherein the conductive polymer layer is configured to become less conductive at least in the thickness direction when at least one of heated beyond a melting point associated with the conductive polymer layer or stretched beyond a yield point of the conductive polymer based current collector.

15 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 14 , further comprising:
at least one additional material layer, wherein the conductive polymer layer is a conductive support layer and the at least one additional material layer includes a conductive permeability prevention layer on the conductive polymer layer configured to at least limit water vapor and oxygen transfer into the battery cell.

16 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 15 , further comprising:
a conductive inner electrode adhesion layer configured to facilitate adhesion between a battery electrode and the conductive polymer based current collector.

17 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 15 , wherein the conductive support layer is a polymer composite material comprising an insulative polymer material and conductive particles in an amount sufficient to render the polymer composite material conductive in the thickness direction between the polymer based current collector and a battery electrode during normal battery operation of the battery cell.

18 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 17 , wherein the conductive particles comprise a range of 20-50% wt carbon.

19 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 15 , wherein the conductive permeability prevention layer is a different conductive polymer material relative to the conductive support layer between 10 to 50 μm in thickness selected from the group consisting of: EVA, PVOH, and PVDC.

20 . The conductive polymer based current collector of claim 15 , wherein the conductive permeability prevention layer is a layer of metal between 20 to 80 nm in thickness.

Assignees

• Sakuu Corp

Inventors

• Rudisill Stephen
• Littau Erik
• Littau Karl
• Acosta Lizett
• Aliahmad Nojan
• Kahn Ali
• Esbah Parinaz

Classifications

• H01M4/661

  Metal or alloys, e.g. alloy coatings (H01M4/669 take precedence) · CPC title

• H01M4/663

  containing carbon or carbonaceous materials as conductive part, e.g. graphite, carbon fibres · CPC title

• H01M10/0525

  Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries · CPC title

• H01M4/668

  Composites of electroconductive material and synthetic resins · CPC title

• H01M4/667 Primary

  in the form of layers, e.g. coatings · CPC title