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Title: An In-Depth Analysis of the Transformation of Tin Foil Anodes during Electrochemical Cycling in Lithium-Ion Batteries

Journal Article · · Journal of the Electrochemical Society
 [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [2]
  1. University of Texas, Austin, TX (United States); OSTI
  2. University of Texas, Austin, TX (United States)
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Tin foils have an impressive lithium-storage capacity more than triple that of graphite anodes, and their adoption could facilitate a drastic improvement in battery energy density. However, implementation of a dense foil electrode architecture represents a significant departure from the standard blade-cast geometry with a distinct electrochemical environment, and this has led to confusion with regards to the first cycle efficiency of the system. In this work, we investigate the unique behavior of a tin active material in a foil architecture to understand its performance as an anode. We find shallow cycling of the foil results in an irreversible formation (< 40%) due to diffusional trapping, but intermediate and complete utilization allows for a remarkably reversible formation reaction (> 90%). This striking nonlinearity stems from an in situ transformation from bulk metal to porous electrode that occurs during formation cycles and defines electrode-level lithium-transport on subsequent cycles. As a result, an alternative cycling procedure for assessing the stability of foils is proposed to account for this chemomechanical effect.

Research Organization:
University of Texas, Austin, TX (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division (MSE)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0005397
OSTI ID:
1980865
Journal Information:
Journal of the Electrochemical Society, Journal Name: Journal of the Electrochemical Society Journal Issue: 12 Vol. 168; ISSN 0013-4651
Publisher:
IOP PublishingCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Circumventing huge volume strain in alloy anodes of lithium batteries journal April 2020
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Roll-to-roll prelithiation of Sn foil anode suppresses gassing and enables stable full-cell cycling of lithium ion batteries journal January 2019
Mechanical-energy influences to electrochemical phenomena in lithium-ion batteries journal January 2011
The Electrochemical Reaction of Lithium with Tin Studied By In Situ AFM journal January 2003
A perspective on electrical energy storage journal December 2014

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