Thermal Runaway Mechanism in Ni-Rich Cathode Full Cells of Lithium-Ion Batteries: The Role of Multidirectional Crosstalk.

Crosstalk, the exchange of chemical species between battery electrodes, significantly accelerates thermal runaway (TR) of lithium-ion batteries. To date, the understanding of their main mechanisms has centered on single-directional crosstalk of oxygen (O2) gas from the cathode to the anode, underestimating the exothermic reactions during TR. However, the role of multidirectional crosstalk in steering additional exothermic reactions is yet to be elucidated due to the difficulties of correlative in situ analyses of full cells. Herein, the way in which such crosstalk triggers self-amplifying feedback is elucidated that dramatically exacerbates TR within enclosed full cells, by employing synchrotron-based high-temperature X-ray diffraction, mass spectrometry, and calorimetry. These findings reveal that ethylene (C2H4) gas generated at the anode promotes O2 evolution at the cathode. This O2 then returns to the anode, further promoting additional C2H4 formation and creating a self-amplifying loop, thereby intensifying TR. Furthermore, CO2, traditionally viewed as an extinguishing gas, engages in the crosstalk by interacting with lithium at the anode to form Li2CO3, thereby accelerating TR beyond prior expectations. These insights have led to develop an anode coating that impedes the formation of C2H4 and O2, to effectively mitigate TR.

Binder-Free Cathode for Thermal Batteries Fabricated Using FeS2 Treated Metal Foam.

In this study, we fabricated a cathode with lower amounts of additive materials and higher amounts of active materials than those of a conventional cathode. A thermal battery was fabricated using FeS2 treated foam as the cathode frame, and its feasibility was verified. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and scanning electron microscopy were used to analyze the effects of thermal sulfidation temperature (400 and 500°C) on the structure and surface morphology of the FeS2 foam. The optimal temperature for the fabrication of the FeSx treated foam was determined to be 500°C. The FeS2 treated foam reduced the interfacial resistance and improved the mechanical strength of the cathode. The discharge capacity of the thermal battery using the FeS2 treated foam was about 1.3 times higher than that of a thermal battery using pure Fe metal foam.

Data on fuel cell performance of Nafion® based hybrid composite membrane containing GO and dihydrogen phosphate functionalized ionic liquid at 70 °C under anhydrous condition.

This data provides the fuel cell performance of Nafion based hybrid membranes containing GO and dihydrogen phosphate functionalized ionic liquid (IL) at 70 °C under anhydrous condition. Readers are requested to go through the article entitled "Nafion® based hybrid composite membrane containing GO and dihydrogen phosphate functionalized ionic liquid for high temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell" (Maiti et al., 2017) [1] for further interpretation and discussion.