The morphology and coulombic efficiency of lithium metal anodes

Goodman, Johanna Karolina Stark

Title:

The morphology and coulombic efficiency of lithium metal anodes

dc.contributor.advisor	Kohl, Paul A.
dc.contributor.author	Goodman, Johanna Karolina Stark
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Alamgir, Faisal
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Meredith, Carson
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Agrawal, Pradeep K.
dc.contributor.committeeMember	Fuller, Thomas F.
dc.contributor.department	Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
dc.date.accessioned	2015-06-08T18:09:56Z
dc.date.available	2015-06-08T18:09:56Z
dc.date.created	2014-05
dc.date.issued	2014-01-07
dc.date.submitted	May 2014
dc.date.updated	2015-06-08T18:09:56Z
dc.description.abstract	Since their commercialization in 1990, the electrodes of the lithium-ion battery have remained fundamentally the same. While energy density improvements have come from reducing the cell packaging, higher capacity electrodes are needed to continue this trend. A lithium metal anode, where the negative electrode half reaction is the plating and stripping of metallic lithium, is explored as an alternative to current graphite anodes. The specific capacity of the lithium metal anode is over ten times that of the graphite anode, making it a serious candidate to further improve the energy density of lithium batteries. Electrodeposited lithium metal forms dendrites, sharp needles that can grow across the separator and short circuit the battery. Thus, a chief goal is to alter lithium’s plating morphology. This was achieved in two separate ionic liquid electrolytes by co-depositing lithium with sodium. The co-deposited sodium is thought to block dendritic sites, leading to a granular deposit. A nucleation study confirmed that metal deposits from the ionic liquid electrolyte containing sodium, prevented dendritic growth from nucleation on, and not after dendrites had already grown. A model based on the geometry of the nuclei was used to gain insight into the effect of the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) that forms on freshly deposited lithium metal. In addition to sodium, the effect of alkaline earth metals on the lithium deposit morphology was also explored. While these metals did not deposit from the ionic liquid electrolyte, their addition also resulted in granular, dendrite free, deposits. The alkaline earth additives generally increased the overpotential for nucleating on the substrate and lowered the current density achievable. Strontium and barium showed the least of these negative effects while still providing a dendrite free deposit. A second hurdle for lithium metal anodes is the instability between the electrolyte and lithium metal. A protective SEI layer that prevents undesired side reactions is difficult to form because of the large volume change associated with cycling. Formation of a better SEI on lithium metal was attempted through the addition vinylene carbonate, which greatly improved the coulombic efficiency of lithium metal plating and stripping. The effect of gases, such as oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide, on the SEI layer was also investigated. It was found that the presence of nitrogen and oxygen improved the coulombic efficiency by facilitating a thinner SEI layer. This work presents attempts at improving the lithium metal anode both by increasing the coulombic efficiency of the redox process and by eliminating dendrite growth. The coulombic efficiency was improved through the bubbling of gases and addition of organic additives but work remains to increase this value further. Dendritic growth, which poses a safety hazard, was completely eliminated by two methods: 1) co-deposition and 2) adsorption of a foreign metal. Both methods could potentially be applied to different electrolytes, making them promising methods for preventing dendritic growth in future lithium metal anodes.
dc.description.degree	Ph.D.
dc.format.mimetype	application/pdf
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1853/53398
dc.language.iso	en_US
dc.publisher	Georgia Institute of Technology
dc.subject	Battery
dc.subject	Lithium
dc.subject	Lithium metal anode
dc.subject	Ionic liquid
dc.subject	Dendrite
dc.subject	Whisker
dc.title	The morphology and coulombic efficiency of lithium metal anodes
dc.type	Text
dc.type.genre	Dissertation
dspace.entity.type	Publication
local.contributor.advisor	Kohl, Paul A.
local.contributor.corporatename	School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
local.contributor.corporatename	College of Engineering
relation.isAdvisorOfPublication	59670f7f-33e1-49ed-8098-ebe05443583b
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication	6cfa2dc6-c5bf-4f6b-99a2-57105d8f7a6f
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication	7c022d60-21d5-497c-b552-95e489a06569
thesis.degree.level	Doctoral