Design and Development of an All Solid State Lithium Sulfur Battery Using Ceramic Polymer Composite Solid Electrolyte
Authors: Penumaka Rani v , Bhattacharya Indranil 
Published: February 2020

Currently widely used Lithium ion batteries are based on metal oxides or phosphates and carbon systems with theoretical specific capacity of about 400 Wh/Kg. However to meet the ever growing energy demand of modern society, specifically for extended range electric vehicles, high energy density batteries are required [1, 2]. From this viewpoint, the use of sulfur as a cathode material is highly beneficial since its theoretical specific capacity corresponding to 1675 mAh/g could generate high energy density of 2600 Wh/Kg which is 3x105 folds higher than the state-of-the art Lithium ion batteries [3]. However, research on lithium sulfur (Li/S) batteries using liquid electrolytes faces several problems such as the loss of the active material in the form of soluble polysulfide reaction products [4, 5]. Hence, for the development of next generation high performance power sources with high energy densities substantial emphasis has be laid on rechargeable all solid-state Li/S batteries. All solid state Li/S batteries include a solid electrolyte that offers several benefits such as good flexibility, potentially high electrochemical stability window and low flammability. The solid state nature could be very beneficial to Li/S batteries as they can prevent polysulfide dissolution and efficiently lessen dendrite penetration [6]. In this work, two kind of sulfur carbon composite electrodes were prepared by mechanical activation and thermal activation technique and the performance was evaluated by incorporating in a solid state battery. A composite solid polymer electrolyte prepared by dispersing the Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 (LATP) ceramic fillers in the blend of high and low molecular weights polymer matrix was used as a solid electrolyte. The solid state battery using thermally activated composite electrode showed good electrochemical performance and cycle stability due to intimate contact between the sulfur and the carbon.

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