Breaking the Crystal 

Lattice

Improving Salt 

Conductivity

Małgorzata (Maggie) Psurek

Thank you to:
❖ Safer

❖ Non-hazardous, non-flammable

❖ Possibly cheaper

❖ Sodium: more eco-friendly

commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spilled_Battery.JPG

Goal: Solid State batteries

Graph provided by Terrence Udovic
Materials: LiCB11

H12 + NaCB11H12

❖ Most conductive superionic conductors 

made so far ➢ High ionic conductivity but no electronic 

conductivity

❖ Conduct at superionic (disordered) stat ➢ Na: occurs above 105°C ➢ Li: occurs above 125°C ❖ Goal: “disordered state” at room temp

Images courtesy of Dr. Terrence Udovic

Cation (Li

+

or Na

+

) Anion 

([CB11

H12]

-

)
Materials: Silica (SiO2)

SBA-15 (8nm and 12 nm pores) High Surface Area (HSA) Silica 

(900-1100 nm particles)

Porous SiO2 disks (made of 

7nm and 13 nm spheres)

www.acsmaterial.com/sba-15-20g-1133.html

high_surface_area_silica_nanoparticleswww.strem.com/catalog/product_blog/98/4/novel_Digital drawings courtesy of Mikael Andersson
Methods: combining salt + silica

Original schematic provided by Mikael Andersson

❖ Purpose: nano-confine the salt so disordered state is 

favoured

❖ Method

➢ Make saturated solution

➢ mix into silica

➢ Or add by capillary action

➢ Dry under vacuum
Green (left 

peaks) = bulk 

NaCB11H12

Red (right 

peaks) = bulk 

LiCB11H12

How do we know it works?

Differential Scanning Calorimetry

ordered phase

transitio

n

disordered 

phase
1.8 NaCB11H12 : 1 HSA SiO2

1 NaCB11H12 : 1 HSA SiO2
Graph used to estimate correct 

volume/mass ratio.

X-int = 1.265 μL solution/mg SiO2

Graph including all final DSC 

results for Na--:HSA ratios
1.2 NaCB11H12 : 1 HSA SiO2
Quasielastic Neutron 

Scattering

❖ High Flux Backscattering Spectrometer 

(HEBS)

❖ Disk-chopper Spectrometer (DCS)

❖ Measures hydrogen dynamics

➢ No movement → elastic (no E change)

➢ Movement → inelastic (E lost or gained)

➢ More movement → broader peak
Anion jump frequency (jumps/sec)

Width of peak 

Speed of anion 

rotation over 

temperature 

range
X-ray Crystallography

1.5 Li-- : 1 HSA

1.2 Li-- : 1 HSA

1 Li-- : 1 HSA

LiCB11H12

hydrate

1.8 Na-- : 1 HSA

1.2 Na-- : 1 HSA

1 Na-- : 1 HSA

NaCB11H12 hydrate

Graph provided by Terrence Udovic
Blue = NaCB11H12 in SBA-15 with 

8nm pores

Red = NaCB11H12

Green = Once-filled porous SiO2

disk

Orange = 1.5 μL solution 

NaCB11H12 / 1 mg HSA SiO2

Purple = 1.8 μL solution 

NaCB11H12 / 1 mg HSA SiO2

True test: Conductivity

Possible Next Steps

❖ Measure conductivity of more samples

➢ Loading samples more than once

➢ 12nm SBA-15

➢ More durable SiO2 disks

❖ More compressive force on HSA SiO2

❖ Different system for measuring conductivity -

larger temperature range

❖ Looking at filled silica under microscope
References & Thank You

❖ Dimitrievska M, Shea P, Kweon K, Bercx M, Varley J, Tang W, Skripov A, Stavila V, Udovic T, Wood B. 

2018. Carbon Incorporation and Anion Dynamics as Synergistic Drivers for Ultrafast Diffusion in 

Superionic LiCB11H12 and NaCB11H12. Advanced Energy Materials. 8(15):1703246.

❖ Tang W, Unemoto A, Zhou W, Stavila V, Matsuo M, Wu H, Orimo S, Udovic T. 2015. Unparalleled 

lithium and sodium superionic conduction in solid electrolytes with large monovalent cage-like 

anions. Energy & Environmental Science. 8(12):3637-3645

Terrence Udovic

Mikael Anderson

Juscelino Leão