Abstract
This work reports a method to explore the catalytic reactivity of electrode surfaces toward the decomposition of carbonate solvents [ethylene carbonate (EC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and EC/DMC]. We show that the decomposition of a 1:1 wt% EC/DMC mixture is accelerated over certain commercially available LiCoO2 materials resulting in the formation of CO2 while over pure EC or DMC the reaction is much slower or negligible. The solubility of the produced CO2 in carbonate solvents is high (0.025 g mL -1) which masks the effect of electrolyte decomposition during storage or use. The origin of this decomposition is not clear but it is expected to be present on other cathode materials and may affect the analysis of SEI products as well as the safety of Li-ion batteries.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 341-346 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of Power Sources |
Volume | 239 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2013 |
Funding
This research was supported by the Materials Sciences and Engineering Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy under contract with UT-Battelle, LLC (KLB, LB, RRU, GMV) and the Fluid Interface Reactions, Structures, and Transport (FIRST) Center, an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences (NJD) . Experiments were conducted by KLB with assistance in cell design and data analysis by LB, GMV and NJD. A portion of the research was performed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory's ShaRE User Facility (SEM – RRU), which is sponsored by the Scientific User Facilities Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, U.S. Department of Energy.
Keywords
- Coulombic losses
- Electrolyte decomposition
- Li-ion safety Gas evolution