Disclosure of Invention
An embodiment of the present invention provides an electrode material for a lithium battery, which can effectively suppress growth of lithium dendrites, the electrode material for a lithium battery including:
the porous structure comprises a porous structure body formed by a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers and porous carbon particles attached to the carbon nanotube fibers, wherein at least part of the porous structure body and/or the porous carbon particles is filled with metallic lithium.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles are carbon fiber microspheres or acetylene black formed by winding carbon fibers.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles have an average pore size of 20 to 70nm, preferably 30 to 50 nm.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles have an average particle size of 2 μm to 150 μm; and/or the electrical conductivity of the porous carbon particles is 1.5 x 103~10S·cm-1(ii) a And/or the specific surface area of the porous carbon particles is 300-1000 m2(ii)/g; and/or the loading amount of the metal lithium in the electrode material is 20-70 wt.%.
In one embodiment, the carbon nanotube fiber further comprises an active-state material positioned between the carbon nanotube fiber and the lithium metal to improve an interface reaction.
In one embodiment, the active material is selected from Al and Al2O3In, and ceramics.
An embodiment of the present invention further provides a method for preparing an electrode material for a lithium battery, including:
immersing a porous structure body comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers in a solution in which porous carbon particles are dispersed, so that the porous carbon particles are uniformly attached to the carbon nanotube fibers, thereby obtaining a material intermediate;
lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles.
In one embodiment, the method further comprises:
and coating an active state material on the carbon nanotube fiber, and enabling the active state material to be positioned between the carbon nanotube fiber and the metallic lithium so as to improve interface reaction.
In one embodiment, the porous structure comprising carbon nanotube fibers is made by a floating catalytic cracking process.
In one embodiment, the method specifically includes:
heating the reaction furnace to 1100-1600 ℃, and introducing carrier gas into the reaction furnace;
gasifying a liquid-phase carbon source, and bringing the gasified liquid-phase carbon source into a high-temperature region of the reaction furnace by using carrier gas to generate an aggregate with a plurality of carbon nano tube fibers;
and depositing the aggregate on a receiving plate to obtain a porous structure comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers.
Compared with the prior art, the technical scheme of the invention has the following beneficial effects:
by combining the porous structure body formed by a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers and the porous carbon particles attached to the porous structure body, the metal lithium can be uniformly distributed in a plurality of porous structures, the morphological characteristics of the metal lithium can be maintained in the charging and discharging process of the lithium battery, the generation of lithium dendrites can be inhibited, the safety of the lithium battery can be improved, and higher specific heat capacity and better cycle performance can be provided.
Detailed Description
The present application will now be described in detail with reference to specific embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are not intended to limit the present application, and structural, methodological, or functional changes made by those skilled in the art according to these embodiments are included in the scope of the present application.
Referring to fig. 1, an embodiment of the present invention provides an electrode material for a lithium battery, including a porous structure body formed by a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers and porous carbon particles attached to the carbon nanotube fibers, wherein metallic lithium is filled in at least a portion of the porous structure body and/or the porous carbon particles.
The porous structure composed of a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers may be represented by a carbon nanotube layer having a set thickness or a self-supporting carbon nanotube film. Preferably, the plurality of carbon nanotube fibers are randomly interwoven, for example, a three-dimensional flat plate-like structure formed by random interweaving. The porous structure may be a structural material that is fabricated to have a set porosity, for example, by a compaction process.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles are carbon fiber microspheres or acetylene black formed by winding carbon fibers.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles have an average pore size of 20 to 70nm, preferably 30 to 50 nm.
In one embodiment, the porous carbon particles have an average particle size of 2 μm to 150 μm; and/or the electrical conductivity of the porous carbon particles is 1.5 x 103~10S·cm-1(ii) a And/or the specific surface area of the porous carbon particles is 300-1000 m2(ii)/g; and/or the loading amount of the metal lithium in the electrode material is 20-70 wt.%.
In one embodiment, the carbon nanotube fiber further comprises an active-state material positioned between the carbon nanotube fiber and the lithium metal to improve an interface reaction.
In one embodiment, the active material is selected from Al and Al2O3In, and ceramics.
Active materials (e.g. Al, Al)2O3In, ceramic material, etc.) may be coated at the interface, for example, In the form of an ultra-thin film.
An embodiment of the present invention further provides a method for preparing an electrode material for a lithium battery, including:
immersing a porous structure body comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers in a solution in which porous carbon particles are dispersed, so that the porous carbon particles are uniformly attached to the carbon nanotube fibers, thereby obtaining a material intermediate;
lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles.
In one embodiment, the method further comprises:
and coating an active state material on the carbon nanotube fiber, and enabling the active state material to be positioned between the carbon nanotube fiber and the metallic lithium so as to improve interface reaction.
In one embodiment, the porous structure comprising carbon nanotube fibers is made by a floating catalytic cracking process.
In one embodiment, the method specifically includes:
s1, heating the reaction furnace to 1100-1600 ℃, and introducing carrier gas into the reaction furnace.
And S2, gasifying the liquid-phase carbon source, and carrying the gasified liquid-phase carbon source into the high-temperature zone of the reaction furnace by using carrier gas to generate the aggregate with a plurality of carbon nano tube fibers.
Wherein, the liquid-phase carbon source can be a mixed solution of ethanol, ferrocene, thiophene, and the like. For example, the weight percentage of ethanol is 90-99.9%, the weight percentage of ferrocene is 0.1-5%, and the weight percentage of thiophene is 0.1-5%. The carrier gas is a mixed gas of hydrogen and nitrogen or hydrogen and an inert gas, for example, the volume percentage of the hydrogen can be 1-100%, the inert gas is argon or helium, and the flow rate of the carrier gas is 1-15L/min.
S3, depositing the aggregate on a receiving plate to obtain the porous structure body comprising a plurality of carbon nano tube fibers.
With reference to fig. 2 in conjunction, the following examples are intended to describe the invention without limiting its scope.
Example 1
1) The cylindrical hollow carbon nanotube aggregate (refer to science, 2004, 304, p276) grown from a high-temperature furnace is continuously wound on a cylindrical horizontal roller under the action of the buoyancy of air, the roller can axially reciprocate while rotating, the moving distance is the length of the roller, and after accumulating and continuously collecting for a certain time, the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is formed, and the thickness of the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is about 0.5 mm.
2) Al is coated on the carbon nano tube fiber in the form of an ultrathin film by means of PVD, and the thickness of the ultrathin Al film is 5 nm.
3) Immersing the obtained carbon nano tube fiber porous material into the carbon nano tube fiber porous material with the average pore diameter of 35nm and the specific surface area of 384m2And in the dispersion liquid of the carbon fiber microspheres for 24 hours, taking out and drying to obtain a material intermediate.
4) Lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate by means of PVD so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles. Wherein the loading of lithium metal in the obtained electrode material was 42%.
The obtained electrode material is used as a negative electrode, lithium iron phosphate is used as a positive electrode to assemble the button cell, and the capacity retention rate of the cell after 250 cycles is 85%.
Example 2
1) Referring to the method of example 1, a cylindrical hollow carbon nanotube aggregate grown from a high temperature furnace is continuously wound on a cylindrical horizontal roller under the buoyancy of air by virtue of van der waals' force between carbon nanotubes, the roller can reciprocate along the axial direction while rotating, the moving distance is the length of the roller, after accumulating and continuously collecting for a certain time, an ethanol solution is applied to the obtained carbon nanotube aggregate, and a roller shaft with a certain pressure is matched to form a self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material, wherein the thickness of the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is about 0.3 mm.
2) Al is treated by PVD2O3Coating the ultra-thin Al film on carbon nanotube fiber in the form of ultra-thin film2O3The thickness of the film was 5 nm.
3) Immersing the obtained carbon nano tube fiber porous material into the carbon nano tube fiber porous material with the average pore diameter of 35nm and the specific surface area of 384m2In the dispersion liquid of the carbon fiber microspheres for 24 hours, taking out and drying to obtain a material intermediate。
4) Lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate by means of PVD so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles. Wherein the loading of lithium metal in the obtained electrode material was 48%.
The obtained electrode material is used as a negative electrode, lithium iron phosphate is used as a positive electrode to assemble the button cell, and the capacity retention rate of the cell after 250 cycles is 92%.
Example 3
1) Referring to the method of example 1, a cylindrical hollow carbon nanotube aggregate grown from a high temperature furnace is continuously wound on a cylindrical horizontal roller under the buoyancy of air by virtue of van der waals' force between carbon nanotubes, the roller can reciprocate along the axial direction while rotating, the moving distance is the length of the roller, after accumulating and continuously collecting for a certain time, an ethylene glycol solution is applied to the obtained carbon nanotube aggregate, and a roller shaft with a certain pressure is matched to form a self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material, wherein the thickness of the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is about 0.3 mm.
2) In is coated on the carbon nano tube fiber In the form of an ultrathin film by means of PVD, and the thickness of the ultrathin In film is 4 nm.
3) The obtained carbon nano tube fiber porous material is immersed into a solution with the average pore diameter of 28nm and the specific surface area of 352m2And in the acetylene black dispersion liquid for 24 hours, taking out and drying to obtain a material intermediate.
4) Lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate by means of PVD so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles. Wherein the loading of lithium metal in the obtained electrode material was 37%.
The obtained electrode material is used as a negative electrode, lithium iron phosphate is used as a positive electrode to assemble the button cell, and the capacity retention rate of the cell after 250 cycles is 82%.
Example 4
1) Referring to the method of example 1, a cylindrical hollow carbon nanotube aggregate grown from a high temperature furnace is continuously wound on a cylindrical horizontal roller under the buoyancy of air by virtue of van der waals' force between carbon nanotubes, the roller can reciprocate along the axial direction while rotating, the moving distance is the length of the roller, after accumulating and continuously collecting for a certain time, an ethylene glycol solution is applied to the obtained carbon nanotube aggregate, and a roller shaft with a certain pressure is matched to form a self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material, wherein the thickness of the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is about 0.3 mm.
2) Al is treated by PVD2O3Coating the ultra-thin Al film on carbon nanotube fiber in the form of ultra-thin film2O3The thickness of the film was 2 nm.
3) Immersing the obtained carbon nano tube fiber porous material into the carbon nano tube fiber porous material with the average pore diameter of 35nm and the specific surface area of 384m2And in the dispersion liquid of the carbon fiber microspheres for 24 hours, taking out and drying to obtain a material intermediate.
4) Lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate by means of PVD so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles. Wherein the loading of lithium metal in the obtained electrode material was 40%.
The obtained electrode material is used as a negative electrode, lithium iron phosphate is used as a positive electrode to assemble the button cell, and the capacity retention rate of the cell after 250 cycles is 84%.
Example 5
1) Referring to the method of example 1, a cylindrical hollow carbon nanotube aggregate grown from a high temperature furnace is continuously wound on a cylindrical horizontal roller under the buoyancy of air by virtue of van der waals' force between carbon nanotubes, the roller can reciprocate along the axial direction while rotating, the moving distance is the length of the roller, after accumulating and continuously collecting for a certain time, an ethylene glycol solution is applied to the obtained carbon nanotube aggregate, and a roller shaft with a certain pressure is matched to form a self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material, wherein the thickness of the self-supporting carbon nanotube fiber porous material is about 0.5 mm.
2) Al is treated by PVD2O3Coating the ultra-thin Al film on carbon nanotube fiber in the form of ultra-thin film2O3The thickness of the film was 3 nm.
3) Immersing the obtained carbon nano tube fiber porous material into the carbon nano tube fiber porous material with the average pore diameter of 35nm and the specific surface area of 384m2In the dispersion of the carbon fiber microspheres for 24 hours, takingDrying to obtain the material intermediate.
4) Lithium metal is deposited on the material intermediate by means of PVD so that the lithium metal is filled in the porous structure and the porous carbon particles. Wherein the loading of lithium metal in the obtained electrode material was 38%.
The obtained electrode material is used as a negative electrode, lithium iron phosphate is used as a positive electrode to assemble the button cell, and the capacity retention rate of the cell after 250 cycles is 80%.
From the above examples, it can be seen that the capacity retention rate of the lithium battery is greatly improved by using the electrode material provided by the present invention as the negative electrode of the lithium battery, especially in example 2, the carbon nanotube fiber porous material with the thickness of 0.3mm is prepared, and the attached pore diameter is 35nm and the specific surface area is 384m2The load capacity of lithium metal can be improved to 48% by the carbon fiber microspheres per gram, and the capacity retention rate of the battery after 250 cycles is 92%, so that the capacity is greatly improved.
Through the above embodiments/examples, the present application has the following beneficial effects:
by combining the porous structure body formed by a plurality of carbon nanotube fibers and the porous carbon particles attached to the porous structure body, the metal lithium can be uniformly distributed in a plurality of porous structures, the morphological characteristics of the metal lithium can be maintained in the charging and discharging process of the lithium battery, the generation of lithium dendrites can be inhibited, the safety of the lithium battery can be improved, and higher specific heat capacity and better cycle performance can be provided.
It should be understood that although the present description refers to embodiments, not every embodiment contains only a single technical solution, and such description is for clarity only, and those skilled in the art should make the description as a whole, and the technical solutions in the embodiments can also be combined appropriately to form other embodiments understood by those skilled in the art.
The above list of details is only for the concrete description of the feasible embodiments of the present application, they are not intended to limit the scope of the present application, and all equivalent embodiments or modifications that do not depart from the technical spirit of the present application are intended to be included within the scope of the present application.