Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) have been extended their application from mobile devices to large-sized battery market such as electric vehicles and energy storage system.[1] Recently, safety issues have become a significant concern for full utilization of these batteries especially in large capacity applications. However, organic liquid electrolytes used in LIBs are problematic due to their high flammability and solvent leakage. In this respect, many Li-ion conducting electrolyte materials for improving battery safety have been investigated as alternative electrolytes for lithium-ion batteries. Among these electrolytes, solid inorganic electrolytes present potential advantages, such as absence of electrolyte leakage, high electrochemical stability, non-flammability, high thermal stability and absence of problems relating to vaporization of organic solvents.[2] However, sheet manufacturing using thin-film technologies for making large-scale lithium-ion batteries, is considered to be very difficult. In addition, a lack of flexibility results in poor interfacial contacts between inorganic solid electrolyte and solid electrodes in the cell during charge and discharge cycling. In this work, we prepared the flexible hybrid electrolytes composed of lithium lanthanum zirconium oxide (Li₇La₃Zr₂O₁₂) as a Li⁺-conducting solid electrolyte and poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) as a polymer binder, and their characteristics and electrochemical properties were investigated. The hybrid electrolyte was employed to assemble lithium-ion battery composed of graphite negative electrode and LiCoO₂ positive electrode.

References

1.  J. B. Goodenough, and Y. Kim, Chem. Mater. 22 (2010) 587.

2.  J. W. Fergus, J. Power Sources 195 (2010) 4554.