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Title: Effects of High and Low Salt Concentration in Electrolytes at Lithium–Metal Anode Surfaces

Journal Article · · Journal of Physical Chemistry. C
 [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3]
  1. Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Department of Chemical Engineering
  2. Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Department of Chemical Engineering and Department of Materials Science and Engineering
  3. Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Department of Chemical Engineering, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Department of Chemistry

The use of high concentration salts in electrolyte solutions of lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries has been shown beneficial for mitigating some effects such as polysulfide shuttle and dendrite growth at the Li metal anode. Such complex solutions have structural, dynamical, and reactivity associated issues that need to be analyzed for a better understanding of the reasons behind such beneficial effects. A passivation interfacial layer known as solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) is generated during battery cycling as a result of electron transfer from the metal anode causing electrolyte decomposition. Here in this work, we investigate using density functional theory and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations the salt decomposition, solvation effects, interactions among intermediate products and other species, and potential components of the SEI layer as a function of chemical nature and concentration of the salt, for lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide (LiTFSI) and lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) at 1M and 4M concentrations in dimethoxyethane. It is found that LiTFSI undergoes a less complete reduction and facilitates charge transfer from the anode, whereas LiFSI shows a more complete decomposition forming LiF as one of the main SEI products. In addition, the specific decomposition mechanisms of each salt clearly point to the initial SEI components and the potential main products derived from them. Finally, very complex networks are found among the salt and solvent molecules in their attempt to maximize Li ion solvation that is quantified through the determination of coordination numbers.

Research Organization:
Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Texas A & M Engineering Experiment Station
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Vehicle Technologies Office (EE-3V)
Grant/Contract Number:
EE0006832
OSTI ID:
1430634
Journal Information:
Journal of Physical Chemistry. C, Vol. 121, Issue 1; ISSN 1932-7447
Publisher:
American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 105 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (14)

Anion effects on the solvation structure and properties of imide lithium salt-based electrolytes journal January 2019
Carbon Nanosponge Cathode Materials and Graphite-Protected Etched Al Foil Anode for Dual-Ion Hybrid Supercapacitor journal January 2018
Mesoscale Physicochemical Interactions in Lithium–Sulfur Batteries: Progress and Perspective journal October 2017
Rational Design of a Dual-Function Hybrid Cathode Substrate for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries journal June 2018
Localized high concentration electrolyte behavior near a lithium–metal anode surface journal January 2019
An ab initio study for probing iodization reactions on metallic anode surfaces of Li–I 2 batteries journal January 2018
Elucidating electrolyte decomposition under electron-rich environments at the lithium-metal anode journal January 2017
Chemically soft solid electrolyte interphase forming additives for lithium-ion batteries journal January 2018
Charge-mediated cation deposition on metallic surfaces journal January 2019
The Electrochemical Performance of Silicon Nanoparticles in Concentrated Electrolyte journal May 2018
Developing High-Performance Lithium Metal Anode in Liquid Electrolytes: Challenges and Progress journal March 2018
Li 2 S growth on graphene: Impact on the electrochemical performance of Li-S batteries journal January 2020
Review on modeling of the anode solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) for lithium-ion batteries journal March 2018
An Aggregate Cluster-Dispersed Electrolyte Guides the Uniform Nucleation and Growth of Lithium at Lithium Metal Anodes journal November 2018

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