Operando liquid cell electron microscopy of discharge and charge kinetics in lithium-oxygen batteries

He, Kun; Bi, Xuanxuan; Yuan, Yifei; Foroozan, Tara; Song, Boao; Amine, Khalil; Lu, Jun; Shahbazian-Yassar, Reza

doi:10.1016/j.nanoen.2018.04.046

Title: Operando liquid cell electron microscopy of discharge and charge kinetics in lithium-oxygen batteries

Journal Article · Wed Apr 25 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Nano Energy

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nanoen.2018.04.046· OSTI ID:1461336

He, Kun ^[1]; Bi, Xuanxuan ^[2]; Yuan, Yifei ^[3]; Foroozan, Tara ^[1]; Song, Boao ^[1];

^[4];

^[2]; Shahbazian-Yassar, Reza ^[1]

Univ. of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL (United States)
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Univ. of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal Univ. (IAU), Dammam (Saudi Arabia); Stanford Univ., Stanford, CA (United States)

Despite the promising future of lithium-oxygen (Li-O₂) battery in replacing conventional lithium ion battery for high-energy applications, the complicated reaction mechanisms determining the sluggish discharge-charge kinetics have not been fully understood. Here, utilizing in situ liquid transmission electron microscopy, the (electro) chemical fundamentals in a working Li-O₂ battery is explored. During discharge, the nucleation of Li₂O₂ is observed at the carbon electrode/electrolyte interface, and the following growth process exhibits Li⁺ diffusion-limited kinetics. Nucleation and growth of Li₂O₂ are also observed within the electrolyte, where there is no direct contact with the carbon electrode indicating the existence of non-Faradaic disproportionation reaction of intermediate LiO₂ into Li₂O₂. The growth of Li₂O₂ isolated in the electrolyte exhibits O₂^- diffusion-limited kinetics. Li₂O₂ at the carbon electrode surface and isolated in the electrolyte are both active upon charging and gradually decomposed. For Li₂O₂ particles rooted at the carbon electrode surface, the decomposition starts at the electrode/Li₂O₂ interface indicating electron-conduction limited charge kinetics. For Li₂O₂ isolated within the electrolyte, surprisingly, a side-to-side decomposition mode is identified indicating the non-Faradaic formation of dissolvable O₂^-, whose diffusion in the electrolyte controls the overall charge kinetics. In conclusion, this work reveals further details of underlying mechanisms in a working Li-O₂ battery and identifies various limiting factors controlling the discharge and charge processes.

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Research Organization:: Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Vehicle Technologies Office (EE-3V); USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-06CH11357; 4J-30361

OSTI ID:: 1461336

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1496465

Journal Information:: Nano Energy, Vol. 49, Issue C; ISSN 2211-2855

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited by: 46 works

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