N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) is the normally used solvent for cathode processing in lithium battery field. However, its high toxicity attracted more and more environmental scrutiny and was restricted by many chemical legislations in industry applications. So, it is necessary to find a greener and safer alternative to replace it. Dihydrolevoglucosenone (Cyrene), a newly reported green dipolar aprotic solvent, has very similar solvent properties as NMP, making it a very attractive candidate. The possibility to use Cyrene to replace NMP for NMC 811 cathode fabrication was studied. Although PVDF binder has very poor solubility in Cyrene at room temperature, increasing temperature can significantly change this. High temperature (above 80 °C) electrode processing with Cyrene gives promising performance, which is comparable to the conventional NMP fabricated electrode. A proof of principle was provided: Cyrene can be a good green alternative to replace NMP. So, the positive results reported here may also lead to a search for more Cyrene-like green solvents that have a higher solubility for PVDF, or of PVDF-like binders that are more soluble in Cyrene, to help making the electrode processing much greener.
Zhou, Hui, Pei, Ben, Fan, Qinglu, Xin, Fengxia, & Whittingham, M. Stanley (2021). Can Greener Cyrene Replace NMP for Electrode Preparation of NMC 811 Cathodes?. Journal of the Electrochemical Society, 168(4). https://doi.org/10.1149/1945-7111/abf87d
Zhou, Hui, Pei, Ben, Fan, Qinglu, et al., "Can Greener Cyrene Replace NMP for Electrode Preparation of NMC 811 Cathodes?," Journal of the Electrochemical Society 168, no. 4 (2021), https://doi.org/10.1149/1945-7111/abf87d
@article{osti_1848579,
author = {Zhou, Hui and Pei, Ben and Fan, Qinglu and Xin, Fengxia and Whittingham, M. Stanley},
title = {Can Greener Cyrene Replace NMP for Electrode Preparation of NMC 811 Cathodes?},
annote = {N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) is the normally used solvent for cathode processing in lithium battery field. However, its high toxicity attracted more and more environmental scrutiny and was restricted by many chemical legislations in industry applications. So, it is necessary to find a greener and safer alternative to replace it. Dihydrolevoglucosenone (Cyrene), a newly reported green dipolar aprotic solvent, has very similar solvent properties as NMP, making it a very attractive candidate. The possibility to use Cyrene to replace NMP for NMC 811 cathode fabrication was studied. Although PVDF binder has very poor solubility in Cyrene at room temperature, increasing temperature can significantly change this. High temperature (above 80 °C) electrode processing with Cyrene gives promising performance, which is comparable to the conventional NMP fabricated electrode. A proof of principle was provided: Cyrene can be a good green alternative to replace NMP. So, the positive results reported here may also lead to a search for more Cyrene-like green solvents that have a higher solubility for PVDF, or of PVDF-like binders that are more soluble in Cyrene, to help making the electrode processing much greener.},
doi = {10.1149/1945-7111/abf87d},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1848579},
journal = {Journal of the Electrochemical Society},
issn = {ISSN 0013-4651},
number = {4},
volume = {168},
place = {United States},
publisher = {IOP Publishing},
year = {2021},
month = {04}}