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Choi JH, Kim SH, Kang HE, Kim M, Choi Y, Yoon YS. Enhanced Thermal Stability and Conductivity of FeF 3 Using Ni-Coated Carbon Composites: Application as High-Temperature Cathodes in Thermal Batteries. Nanomaterials (Basel) 2023; 13:3089. [PMID: 38132986 PMCID: PMC10745831 DOI: 10.3390/nano13243089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
Cathode active materials and conductive additives for thermal batteries operating at high temperatures have attracted research interest, with a particular focus on compounds offering high thermal stability. Recently, FeF3 has been proposed as a candidate for high-voltage cathode materials; however, its commercialization is hindered by its low conductivity. In this study, conductive additives, such as Ni-coated carbon composites (multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and carbon black (CB)), were utilized to enhance the thermal stability and conductivity of FeF3. The incorporation of metal-carbon conductive additives in the FeF3 composite increased the thermal stability by more than 10 wt.% and ensured high capacity upon conductivity enhancement. The FeF3@Ni/MWCB 15 wt.% composite containing 30 wt.% Ni exhibited a discharge capacity of ∼86% of the theoretical capacity of 712 mAh/g. The use of Ni-coated carbon-based conductive additives will allow the application of FeF3 as an effective high-temperature cathode material for thermal batteries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ji-Hyeok Choi
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (J.-H.C.); (S.H.K.); (H.E.K.)
| | - Su Hyeong Kim
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (J.-H.C.); (S.H.K.); (H.E.K.)
| | - Ha Eun Kang
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (J.-H.C.); (S.H.K.); (H.E.K.)
| | - Minu Kim
- Defense Materials and Energy Development Center, Agency for Defense Development, Daejeon 34060, Republic of Korea;
| | - Yusong Choi
- Defense Materials and Energy Development Center, Agency for Defense Development, Daejeon 34060, Republic of Korea;
- Department of Defense System Engineering, University of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34113, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Soo Yoon
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (J.-H.C.); (S.H.K.); (H.E.K.)
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Kim SH, Choi JH, Park SH, Ahn TY, Cheong HW, Yoon YS. FeF 3/(Acetylene Black and Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube) Composite for Cathode Active Material of Thermal Battery through Formation of Conductive Network Channels. Nanomaterials (Basel) 2023; 13:2783. [PMID: 37887934 PMCID: PMC10609788 DOI: 10.3390/nano13202783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Revised: 10/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Considerable research is being conducted on the use of FeF3 as a cathode replacement for FeS2 in thermal batteries. However, FeF3 alone is inefficient as a cathode active material because of its low electrical conductivity due to its wide bandgap (5.96 eV). Herein, acetylene black and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were combined with FeF3, and the ratio was optimized. When acetylene black and MWCNTs were added separately to FeF3, the electrical conductivity increased, but the mechanical strength decreased. When acetylene black and MWCNTs were both added to FeF3, the FeF3/M1AB4 sample (with 1 wt.% MWCNTs and 4% AB) afforded a discharge capacity of approximately 74% of the theoretical capacity (712 mAh/g) of FeF3. Considering the electrical conductivity and mechanical strength, this composition was confirmed to be the most suitable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Su Hyeong Kim
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (S.H.K.); (J.-H.C.); (S.H.P.)
| | - Ji-Hyeok Choi
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (S.H.K.); (J.-H.C.); (S.H.P.)
| | - So Hyun Park
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (S.H.K.); (J.-H.C.); (S.H.P.)
| | - Tae Young Ahn
- Agency for Defense Development (ADD), Daejeon 34186, Republic of Korea;
| | - Hae-Won Cheong
- Agency for Defense Development (ADD), Daejeon 34186, Republic of Korea;
| | - Young Soo Yoon
- Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Republic of Korea; (S.H.K.); (J.-H.C.); (S.H.P.)
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Fan X, Zhu Y, Luo C, Suo L, Lin Y, Gao T, Xu K, Wang C. Pomegranate-Structured Conversion-Reaction Cathode with a Built-in Li Source for High-Energy Li-Ion Batteries. ACS Nano 2016; 10:5567-5577. [PMID: 27163232 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.6b02309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Transition metal fluorides (such as FeF3 or CoF2) promise significantly higher theoretical capacities (>571 mAh g(-1)) than the cathode materials currently used in Li-ion batteries. However, their practical application faces major challenges that include poor electrochemical reversibility induced by the repeated bond-breaking and formation and the accompanied volume changes and the difficulty of building an internal Li source within the material so that a full Li-ion cell could be assembled at a discharged state without inducing further technical risk and cost issues. In this work, we effectively addressed these challenges by designing and synthesizing, via an aerosol-spray pyrolysis technique, a pomegranate-structured nanocomposite FeM/LiF/C (M = Co, Ni), in which 2-3 nm carbon-coated FeM nanoparticles (∼10 nm in diameter) and LiF nanoparticles (∼20 nm) are uniformly embedded in a porous carbon sphere matrix (100-1000 nm). This uniquely architectured nanocomposite was made possible by the extremely short pyrolysis time (∼1 s) and carbon coating in a high-temperature furnace, which prevented the overgrowth of FeM and LiF in the primordial droplet that serves as the carbon source. The presence of Ni or Co in FeM/LiF/C effectively suppresses the formation of Fe3C and further reduces the metallic particle size. The pomegranate architecture ensures the intimate contact among FeM, LiF, and C, thus significantly enhancing the conversion-reaction kinetics, while the nanopores inside the pomegranate-like carbon matrix, left by solvent evaporation during the pyrolysis, effectively accommodate the volume change of FeM/LiF during charge/discharge. Thus, the FeM/LiF/C nanocomposite shows a high specific capacity of >300 mAh g(-1) for more than 100 charge/discharge cycles, which is one of the best performances among all of the prelithiated metal fluoride cathodes ever reported. The pomegranate-structured FeM/LiF/C with its built-in Li source provides an inspiration to the practical application of conversion-reaction-type chemistries as next-generation cathode materials for high-energy density Li-ion batteries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiulin Fan
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Yujie Zhu
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Chao Luo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Liumin Suo
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Yan Lin
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Tao Gao
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
| | - Kang Xu
- Electrochemistry Branch, Power and Energy Division Sensor and Electron Devices Directorate, U.S. Army Research Laboratory , Adelphi, Maryland 20783, United States
| | - Chunsheng Wang
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland , College Park, Maryland 20742, United States
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