Lithium ion battery electrolytes are complex formulations of solvents, salts, and additives. Each component can contribute to the battery performance in a unique way. For example, high dielectric constant solvents are necessary to dissolve the lithium salt, but are high viscosity. Therefore, low viscosity solvents are required to reduce the bulk electrolyte viscosity. Salt type and concentration can affect properties such as conductivity and thermal stability. Finally, many additives may be considered for use in formulations – with functions such as anode solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formers, cathode SEI formers, acid scavengers, thermal stabilizers, and more. Development of optimized electrolyte formulations can require many experiments to find the best components and ratios/concentrations of components.

Using Wildcat’s high throughput battery workflow, we can apply combinatorial chemistry approaches to screen hundreds of new electrolyte components and study their interactions for electrolyte formulation development. Combining statistical models for formulation optimization, and component substitution, the function of a single component in a complex electrolyte and its interaction with other components can be elucidated. In this presentation, we will demonstrate the power of these tools to rapidly improve and optimize complex electrolyte formulations.