Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Molecular-level insights into structure and dynamics in ionic liquids and polymer gel electrolytes

Journal Article · · Journal of Molecular Liquids
 [1];  [2];  [2];  [3];  [2]
  1. City Univ. of New York (CUNY), NY (United States); City Univ. of New York (CUNY), NY (United States)
  2. City Univ. of New York (CUNY), NY (United States)
  3. New York Structural Biology Center, New York, NY (United States)

We report designing new electrolytes requires a better understanding of the correlation between their transport properties and their molecular structure. In this work, we present a detailed study of ionic liquids and polymer gel electrolytes probing their structure and dynamics by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. In particular, ammonium- and phosphonium-based ionic liquids (ILs) are combined with different LiTFSI concentrations, and then with different ratios of poly(methylmethacrylate) polymer. The temperature dependence of self-diffusion coefficients of mobile species, DLi+, DTFSI- and DP4441+ or DN4441+, measured by pulsed field gradient (PFG) NMR spectroscopy obeys the Arrhenius equation. Diffusivity of [P4441][TFSI] ILs is found to be greater than those of the [N4441][TFSI] ILs in both liquid and gel electrolytes. Solid state NMR experiments including 13C and 19F MAS, 13C{19F},13C{1H} CPMAS probe the local structure and molecular-level interactions between ions and polymer in gel electrolytes, particularly for samples with higher PMMA content (≥25 wt%). Finally, the fast field cycling relaxometry has been used to unveil the rotational and translational dynamics of P4441+ or N4441+ and TFSI- by measuring 1H and 19F R1 relaxation rate profiles at different temperatures. A comprehensive NMR analysis including relaxation studies at low magnetic field provides decisive new insights regarding the formation of ionic clusters and the interaction of ions with the polymer chain in the case of the gel electrolytes.

Research Organization:
Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleveland, OH (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); US Office of Naval Research; National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0019409
OSTI ID:
1853227
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1776458
Journal Information:
Journal of Molecular Liquids, Journal Name: Journal of Molecular Liquids Journal Issue: C Vol. 329; ISSN 0167-7322
Publisher:
ElsevierCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (85)

Understanding Ionic Liquids at the Molecular Level: Facts, Problems, and Controversies journal January 2008
Ionic-Liquid-Based Polymer Electrolytes for Battery Applications journal November 2015
Connection between Lithium Coordination and Lithium Diffusion in [Pyr 12O1 ][FTFSI] Ionic Liquid Electrolytes journal February 2018
Lithium solvation in a PMMA membrane plasticized by a lithium-conducting ionic liquid based on 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide journal September 2008
Fast-field-cycling NMR: Applications and instrumentation journal April 2001
Dynamic processes and chemical composition of Lepidium sativum seeds determined by means of field-cycling NMR relaxometry and NMR spectroscopy journal September 2012
Investigations on some electrochemical aspects of lithium-ion ionic liquid/gel polymer battery systems journal October 2008
Influence of cellulose gel matrix on BMIMCl ionic liquid dynamics and conductivity journal February 2017
Fast ion transport in new lithium electrolytes gelled with PMMA. 1. Influence of polymer concentration journal October 1993
New polymer electrolytes based on PVC/PMMA blend for plastic lithium-ion batteries journal March 2001
Application of ionic liquids as low-volatility plasticizers for PMMA journal October 2003
Determination of ionic self-diffusion coefficients of lithium electrolytes using the pulsed field gradient NMR journal September 1999
Dynamical regimes of lipids in additivated liposomes with enhanced elasticity: A field-cycling NMR relaxometry approach journal September 2017
Physical and electrochemical properties of low-viscosity phosphonium ionic liquids as potential electrolytes journal September 2007
Application of room temperature ionic liquids to Li batteries journal December 2007
Polymer electrolytes based on poly(ethylene glycol) dimethyl ether and the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate: Preparation, physico-chemical characterization, and theoretical study journal December 2007
Soft matter electrolytes based on polymethylmetacrylate dispersions in lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide/1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide ionic liquids journal December 2010
Gel polymer electrolyte based on polymethyl methacrylate matrix composited with methacrylisobutyl-polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane by phase inversion method journal July 2018
Translational dynamics of ionic liquid imidazolium cations at solid/liquid interface in gel polymer electrolyte journal October 2015
Solubility of carbon dioxide in three [Tf2N] ionic liquids journal October 2014
Thermophysical properties of sulfonium- and ammonium-based ionic liquids journal November 2014
LiTFSI-BEPyTFSI as an improved ionic liquid electrolyte for rechargeable lithium batteries journal November 2007
An imidazolium based ionic liquid electrolyte for lithium batteries journal November 2010
Different roles of ionic liquids in lithium batteries journal December 2016
Effect of the alkyl chain length in 1-alkyl-3-methylimidazolium ionic liquids on inter-molecular interactions and rotational dynamics journal October 2015
Preparation of polymer electrolytes using ionic liquids and evaluation of physicochemical properties journal January 2019
Characterization and properties of ternary P(VdF-HFP)-LiTFSI-EMITFSI ionic liquid polymer electrolytes journal May 2012
Investigation of ionic conductivity and relaxation in plasticized PMMA-LiClO4 solid polymer electrolytes journal June 2018
Innovative Electrolytes Based on Ionic Liquids and Polymers for Next-Generation Solid-State Batteries journal February 2019
Polymer Electrolytes Containing Solvate Ionic Liquids: A New Approach To Achieve High Ionic Conductivity, Thermal Stability, and a Wide Potential Window journal December 2017
NMR Relaxometry and Diffusometry Analysis of Dynamics in Ionic Liquids and Ionogels for Use in Lithium-Ion Batteries journal July 2020
Do TFSA Anions Slither? Pressure Exposes the Role of TFSA Conformational Exchange in Self-Diffusion journal November 2015
Understanding the Nature of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Relaxation by Means of Fast-Field-Cycling Relaxometry and Molecular Dynamics Simulations—The Validity of Relaxation Models journal February 2020
Relationship between Conductivity, Ion Diffusion, and Transference Number in Perfluoropolyether Electrolytes journal April 2016
From Local to Diffusive Dynamics in Polymer Electrolytes: NMR Studies on Coupling of Polymer and Ion Dynamics across Length and Time Scales journal November 2019
Highly Conductive Ionic-Liquid Gels Prepared with Orthogonal Double Networks of a Low-Molecular-Weight Gelator and Cross-Linked Polymer journal October 2015
Kinetics of Cross-Polarization in Solid-State NMR:  A Guide for Chemists journal March 2002
Ion transport in solvent-free polymers journal January 1988
Ion and Solvent Dynamics in Gel Electrolytes Based on Ethylene Oxide Grafted Acrylate Polymers journal November 2002
Mixed Solvent and Polymer Coordination in PAN and PMMA Gel Polymer Electrolytes Studied by Ab Initio Calculations and Raman Spectroscopy journal November 2003
Existing Condition and Migration Property of Ions in Lithium Electrolytes with Ionic Liquid Solvent journal October 2007
Computational and Experimental Investigation of Li-Doped Ionic Liquid Electrolytes: [pyr14][TFSI], [pyr13][FSI], and [EMIM][BF 4 ] journal September 2014
Enhanced Lithium Transference Numbers in Ionic Liquid Electrolytes journal October 2008
Spectroscopic Identification of the Lithium Ion Transporting Species in LiTFSI-Doped Ionic Liquids journal January 2009
Structure−Properties Relationships of Lithium Electrolytes Based on Ionic Liquid journal January 2010
Molecular Environment and Enhanced Diffusivity of Li + Ions in Lithium-Salt-Doped Ionic Liquid Electrolytes journal January 2011
Increasing the conductivity of crystalline polymer electrolytes journal January 2005
Ionic-liquid materials for the electrochemical challenges of the future journal July 2009
Designing solid-state electrolytes for safe, energy-dense batteries journal February 2020
Transport and Association of Ions in Lithium Battery Electrolytes Based on Glycol Ether Mixed with Halogen-Free Orthoborate Ionic Liquid journal November 2017
Applications of ionic liquids in the chemical industry journal January 2008
Ionogels, ionic liquid based hybrid materials journal January 2011
Ionic liquid polymer electrolytes journal January 2013
Quaternary ammonium and phosphonium based ionic liquids: a comparison of common anions journal January 2014
Dynamics of the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulphonyl)imide studied by nuclear magnetic resonance dispersion and diffusion journal January 2015
The solvent dynamics at pore surfaces in molecular gels studied by field-cycling magnetic resonance relaxometry journal January 2014
The influence of cations on lithium ion coordination and transport in ionic liquid electrolytes: a MD simulation study journal January 2016
Poly(ethylene oxide)-based electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries journal January 2015
Influence of oligo(ethylene oxide) substituents on pyrrolidinium-based ionic liquid properties, Li + solvation and transport journal January 2016
Dynamics of ionic liquids in bulk and in confinement by means of 1 H NMR relaxometry – BMIM-OcSO 4 in an SiO 2 matrix as an example journal January 2016
Molecular dynamics of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium triflate ionic liquid studied by 1H and 19F nuclear magnetic resonances journal January 2017
Dynamical properties of EMIM-SCN confined in a SiO 2 matrix by means of 1 H NMR relaxometry journal January 2017
The gelation influence on diffusion and conductivity enhancement effect in renewable ionic gels based on a LMWG journal January 2018
Polymeric ionic liquids for lithium-based rechargeable batteries journal January 2019
A long-chain protic ionic liquid inside silica nanopores: enhanced proton mobility due to efficient self-assembly and decoupled proton transport journal January 2018
Improved lithium ion dynamics in crosslinked PMMA gel polymer electrolyte journal January 2019
Industrial preparation of phosphonium ionic liquidsPortions of this work were presented at the following meetings: (a) 224th American Chemical Society Conference, Boston, USA, 2002; (b) Green Solvents for Catalysis Meeting, held in Bruchsal, Germany, 13–16th October 2002. journal December 2002
Electrolytes for solid-state lithium rechargeable batteries: recent advances and perspectives journal January 2011
Transparent, flexible, and paramagnetic ionogels based on PMMA and the iron-based ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrachloroferrate(iii) [Bmim][FeCl4] journal January 2010
Ionic liquids and organic ionic plastic crystals utilizing small phosphonium cations journal January 2011
Spin Diffusion Measurements: Spin Echoes in the Presence of a Time‐Dependent Field Gradient journal January 1965
Room-temperature phosphonium ionic liquids for supercapacitor application journal April 2005
Dynamic effects of pair correlation functions on spin relaxation by translational diffusion in liquids journal January 1975
Dynamic effects of pair correlation functions on spin relaxation by translational diffusion in liquids. II. Finite jumps and independent T 1 processes journal May 1978
Sideband intensities in NMR spectra of samples spinning at the magic angle journal December 1980
The anomalous adsorbate dynamics at surfaces in porous media studied by nuclear magnetic resonance methods. The orientational structure factor and Lévy walks journal October 1998
Determining diffusion coefficients of ionic liquids by means of field cycling nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry journal June 2014
Relaxation Effects in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Absorption journal April 1948
Decoupling of Ionic Transport from Segmental Relaxation in Polymer Electrolytes journal February 2012
Lithium-Ion-Conducting Electrolytes: From an Ionic Liquid to the Polymer Membrane journal January 2009
Editors’ Choice—Understanding the Superior Cycling Performance of Si Anode in Highly Concentrated Phosphonium-Based Ionic Liquid Electrolyte journal August 2020
Structural and Electrochemical Analysis of PMMA Based Gel Electrolyte Membranes journal January 2015
Ionogels Based on Poly(methyl methacrylate) and Metal-Containing Ionic Liquids: Correlation between Structure and Mechanical and Electrical Properties journal March 2016
Gelled Electrolyte Containing Phosphonium Ionic Liquids for Lithium-Ion Batteries journal June 2018
Physical and Electrochemical Properties of Room Temperature Ionic Liquids Based on Quaternary Phosphonium Cations journal January 2007