Patent Publication Number: US-2023163403-A1

Title: Degassing Apparatus And Degassing Method

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a national phase entry under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/KR2021/005718 filed on May 7, 2021, which claims the benefit of the priority of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2020-0054784, filed on May 7, 2020, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to a degassing apparatus, which discharges a gas generated therein while an activation process is performed after an electrode assembly and an electrolyte are inserted into a pouch, and a degassing method, and more particularly, to a degassing apparatus, in which at least one more of a lower mold and an upper mold, which press a pouch, are cooled to increase in viscosity of an electrolyte, thereby solving a problem, in which the electrolyte is discharged together when a gas is discharged, and a degassing method. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     Recently, with the rapid development of the electric, electronic, telecommunication and computer industries, the demand for high performance and high safety batteries is gradually increasing. Particularly, as electronic devices are becoming more compact, thinner and lighter, the demands for miniaturization and thinning of batteries is gradually increasing. In response to these demands, a lithium secondary battery with a high energy density is drawing the most attention. 
     Lithium batteries have advantages of long lifespan and large capacity and are widely used in portable electronic devices. The lithium batteries comprise lithium metal batteries and lithium ion batteries, which use a liquid electrolyte, and lithium polymer batteries using a polymer solid battery depending on types of electrolytes. 
     In addition, lithium secondary batteries are classified into a prismatic battery using a prismatic can, a cylindrical battery using a cylindrical can, and a pouch-type battery using a pouch according to types of exteriors that seal an electrode assembly. 
     Among them, the pouch-type battery has advantages such as higher energy density per unit weight and volume, enables thinner and lighter battery, as well as a lower material cost as an exterior, and thus has been actively developed in recent years. 
     In addition, a method for manufacturing a pouch-type battery using the liquid electrolyte is as follows. First, a positive electrode and a negative electrode are manufactured, and then, a separator is disposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode, and the positive electrode, the separator, and the negative electrode are stacked to manufacture an electrode assembly. Then, the electrode assembly is inserted together with the electrolyte into the inside of the pouch. 
     Here, as illustrated in  FIG.  1   , which simply shows a schematic shape of the degassing apparatus according to the related art, a pouch  1  is provided with a body part  1   a , in which an electrode assembly and an electrolyte are embedded, and a gas pocket part  1   b , which is expanded to one side from the body part  1   a  and of which the inside is opened to allow a gas to enter and exit. The gas pocket part  1   b  may be a portion at which a gas is collected during the degassing process, i.e., a portion, which is cut and removed when the degassing is completed. Heat and a pressure are applied to the cut portions of the gas pocket part  1   b  and the body part  1   a  to seal the cut portions. 
     After the electrode assembly is embedded first in the pouch  1 , the electrolyte is injected into the pouch  1  to impregnate the electrode assembly into the electrolyte. When the electrolyte is injected as described above, an edge of an opening, into which the electrode assembly is inserted, is fused to be bonded, thereby sealing the pouch  1 . 
     Also, after an aging process is performed for stabilization, a charging/discharging process is performed to activate the battery. During the charging/discharging process, since a gas is generated inside the pouch  1 , degassing is performed to discharge the gas generated therein. After the degassing process is performed, the gas pocket part  1   b  is cut and discarded, and the cut portions of the gas pocket part  1   b  and the body part  1   a  are sealed to manufacture a secondary battery. 
     As illustrated in  FIG.  1   , in the degassing process, the body part  1   a  of the pouch  1  is seated on a lower mold  2 , and then, an upper mold  3  descends onto the body part  1   a  to press the body part  1   a . Here, a negative pressure is applied to the gas pocket part  1   b  after an end of a gas inhaler  4  is inserted into the gas pocket part  1   b  to suction the gas. Here, the gas existing in the body part  1   a  is pushed into the gas pocket part  1   b  by the pressure applied to the upper mold  3 , and thus, the gas moving through the gas inhaler  4  is discharged from the gas pocket part  1   b  to the outside. 
     However, in the above-described degassing method, a portion of the electrolyte is discharged together with the gas according to the amount and viscosity of the electrolyte injected at the beginning, the descending pressure and descending speed of the upper mold  3 , the suction force of the gas inhaler  4 , and the like. 
     Also, when the amount of electrolyte within the body part  1   a  decreases below a certain level due to an increase in discharge amount of electrolyte increases due to the discharge of the gas, the lifespan of the secondary battery may be deteriorated, and also, when the discharge amount of gas is too small, the gas remaining in the body part  1   a  may cause swelling. 
     DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
     Technical Problem 
     Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a degassing apparatus and a degassing method, which are capable of blocking or minimizing a discharge of an electrolyte during a degassing process. 
     Technical Solution 
     The present invention for achieving the above object provides a degassing method and a degassing apparatus that is capable of performing the degassing method. 
     A degassing method for a pouch that comprises a body part, on which an electrode assembly is mounted, and into which an electrolyte is injected, and a gas pocket part extending from the body part to one side, according to the present invention comprises: a pouch seating step (S 10 ) of seating the body part on a lower mold; a pressing step (S 30 ) of allowing an upper mold to descend so as to press the body part placed on the lower mold; and an inhalation step (S 40 ) of suctioning a gas by inserting a gas inhaler into the gas pocket part, wherein, before starting the inhalation step (S 40 ), a cooling step (S 20 ) of cooling the body part is performed. 
     The cooling step (S 20 ) may be started after the pouch seating step (S 10 ) and before the pressing step (S 30 ), and an end of the cooling step (S 20 ) may be adjusted according to a change in cooling rate and viscosity of the electrolyte. 
     The inhalation step (S 40 ) may be started simultaneously when the cooling step (S 20 ) and the pressing step (S 30 ) are performed. A negative pressure applied in the inhalation step (S 40 ) may also be adjusted according to a change in viscosity of the electrolyte. 
     Thus, after the electrolyte is cooled to a temperature less than a predetermined temperature, the inhalation step (S 40 ) may be started. 
     Also, in the cooling step (S 20 ), a connection point between the body part and the gas pocket part may be more quickly cooled than other points. Here, in the cooling step (S 20 ), the electrolyte may be cooled within a temperature range in which a change in physical property of the electrolyte does not occur. 
     In addition, the present invention may provide a degassing apparatus that is capable of performing the above-described degassing method. A degassing apparatus for a pouch that comprises a body part, on which an electrode assembly is mounted, and into which an electrolyte is injected, and a gas pocket part extending from the body part to one side, according to the present invention comprises: a lower mold placed on a bottom surface of the body part; and an upper mold descending to press a top surface of the body part placed on the lower mold, wherein at least one or more of the lower mold or the upper mold are cooled by a cooling member to cool the electrolyte injected into the body part when being in contact with the body part. 
     The degassing apparatus may further comprise a gas inhaler that is inserted into the gas pocket part to suction a gas when the lower mold and the upper mold press the body part. 
     The cooling member may comprise a Peltier element that is cooled when current is applied. 
     The Peltier element may be installed on the upper mold or the lower mold so that a surface of the upper mold or a surface of the lower mold, which is in contact with the body part, is more quickly cooled than other portions. 
     The Peltier element may be installed on the lower mold or installed on each of both the upper mold and the lower mold. 
     When the pouch is seated, the Peltier elements installed on the lower mold may be more densely installed at a boundary point between the body part and the gas pocket part than other points. 
     When a viscosity of the electrolyte before the cooling is ‘X’, the cooling device may be configured to cool the electrolyte until the viscosity of the electrolyte after the cooling becomes ‘1.5×’ or more. For example, when a temperature of the electrolyte before the cooling is 20 degrees to 30 degrees, a temperature of the electrolyte after the cooling may be cooled to a temperature of 0 degree to 15 degrees by the cooling device. For example, if the viscosity is 4.37 Pa.s when a temperature of the electrolyte before the cooling is 25° C., the cooling may be performed up to a temperature at which the viscosity is 6.56 Pa·s or more. 
     The gas inhaler may suction a gas after the electrolyte is cooled to a predetermined reference temperature or more. 
     Advantageous Effects 
     In the present invention having the above configuration, since the cooling liquid is sufficiently cooled before the gas is suctioned to increase in viscosity, the movement of the gas to the gas pocket part may be suppressed as much as possible to prevent the electrolyte from being unnecessarily discharged. 
     In the present invention, since the cooling of the electrolyte is adjusted according to the change in cooling rate and viscosity of the electrolyte, the secondary batteries having various specifications may be applied. 
     In addition, in the present invention, the viscosity of the electrolyte at the specific point (particularly, the point that is close to the boundary with the gas pocket part) may further increase by cooling the specific point more rapidly, and thus, the amount and speed of the electrolyte moving to the gas pocket part may be delayed 
     In addition, the degassing apparatus according to the present invention may comprise the Peltier element that is cooled when the current is applied so that the cooling of the electrolyte is performed relatively simply and quickly through the control of the current, and the cooling may be more efficiently controlled according to the viscosity of the electrolyte. 
     Particularly, according to the present invention, since the Peltier element is used as the cooling member to more quickly reduce the temperature of the specific part, the movement of the electrolyte may be delayed more quickly and efficiently at the portion that serves as the passage when the gas and the electrolyte flow. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG.  1    is a schematic view illustrating a degassing apparatus according to prior art. 
         FIG.  2    is a flowchart illustrating a degassing method according to the present invention. 
         FIG.  3    is a schematic view illustrating a degassing apparatus according to the present invention. 
         FIG.  4    is a perspective view illustrating a Peltier element in a degassing apparatus according to the present invention. 
         FIG.  5    is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which an electrode assembly is inserted into a pouch. 
     
    
    
     MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in such a manner that the technical idea of the present invention may easily be carried out by a person with ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains. The present invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. 
     In order to clearly describe the present invention, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted, and the same reference numerals are assigned to the same or similar components throughout the specification. 
     Also, terms or words used in this specification and claims should not be restrictively interpreted as ordinary meanings or dictionary-based meanings, but should be interpreted as meanings and concepts conforming to the scope of the present invention on the basis of the principle that an inventor can properly define the concept of a term to describe and explain his or her invention in the best ways. 
     The present invention provides a degassing apparatus for removing a gas in a pouch and a degassing method that is capable of performing degassing using the degassing apparatus according to embodiments, respectively. Thus, hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     First Embodiment 
     The present invention provides a degassing method for removing a gas in a pouch as a first embodiment. 
     Referring to  FIG.  2    illustrating a flowchart of the degassing method according to the present invention, the degassing method according to the present invention relates to a method for degassing a pouch  10  comprising a body part  10   a , on which an electrode assembly is mounted, and into which an electrolyte is injected, and a gas pocket part  10   b  extending from the body part  10   a  to one side and comprises a pouch seating step (S 10 ), a cooling step (S 20 ), a pressing step (S 30 ), and an inhalation step (S 40 ). 
     The pouch seating step (S 10 ) is a step of seating the body part  10   a  on a lower mold  20 . As illustrated in  FIG.  5    that illustrates a state in which the electrode assembly  11  is inserted into the pouch  10 , the pouch  10  to be seated on the lower mold  20  is seated after the electrolyte and the electrode assembly  11  are embedded in the body part  10   a , and then, an aging process and an activation process are completely performed. 
     After the pouch seating step (S 10 ), the pressing step (S 30 ) is performed, and the cooling step (S 20 ) is performed before the pressing step (S 30 ) or during the pressing step (S 30 ). That is, a start time of the cooling step (S 20 ) may be different depending on whether a cooling member  50  is installed on the lower mold  20  or an upper mold  30 . 
     In the cooling step (S 20 ), the cooling member  50  installed (or connected to be heat-exchanged) on at least one of the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30  or both the lower mold  20  and the upper mold  30  is configured to cool the body part  10   a  of the pouch  10 . In the pressing step (S 30 ), the upper mold  30  descends to press the body part  10   a  placed on the lower mold  20  at a predetermined pressure. 
     Here, if the cooling member  50  is mounted on or connected to the upper mold  30  before the body part  10   a  is cooled to a predetermined temperature, in the pressing step (S 30 ), a contact step, in which a contact state is maintained for a certain time without a substantial pressure causing movement of a gas may be selectively performed so that a pressure is not applied to the body part  10   a , but only heat exchange for the cooling is performed. Also, when the body part  10   a  is cooled to a predetermined temperature, the contact step may be released, and an appropriate pressure may be applied to cause the movement of the gas in the body part  10   a.    
     After the pressing step (S 30 ), the inhalation step (S 40 ) is performed, and the cooling step (S 20 ), in which the body part  10   a  is cooled to increase in viscosity of the electrolyte, may be performed before or after the pressing step (S 30 ) before the inhalation step (S 40 ). 
     In the inhalation step (S 40 ), an end of the gas inhaler  40  is inserted into the gas pocket part  10   b  of the pouch  10  to apply a certain negative pressure, thereby suctioning the gas. Here, the gas in the body part  10   a  is in a state of moving to the gas pocket part  10   b  through the pressing step (S 30 ), and the movement of the electrolyte of which the viscosity increases through the cooling step (S 20 ) is suppressed in the pressing step (S 30 ), and thus, an amount of electrolyte moving to the gas inhaler  40  is minimized. Therefore, the inhalation step (S 40 ) is started after cooling the electrolyte so that the viscosity of the electrolyte sufficiently increases. 
     As described above, if before the inhalation step (S 40 ), the cooling step (S 20 ) is possible even after the pressing step (S 30 ), but if the cooling member  50  is configured to be disposed on the lower mold  20 , it is preferable that the cooling step (S 20 ) is started after the pouch seating step (S 10 ) and before the pressing step (S 30 ) to increase in process rate. 
     Also, if the temperature of the electrolyte is sufficiently low in order to increase in process rate, or if instantaneous cooling is possible according to performance of the cooling member  50 , the inhalation step (S 40 ) may be started simultaneously when the cooling step (S 20 ) and the pressing step (S 30 ) are performed. 
     Also, the end of the cooling step (S 20 ) may be adjusted according to the change in cooling rate and viscosity of the electrolyte, and the negative pressure acting in the inhalation step (S 40 ) may be adjusted according to the change in viscosity of the electrolyte. However, in this embodiment, the inhalation step (S 40 ) may be started after the electrolyte is cooled to a predetermined temperature or less, and it is preferable that, in the cooling step (S 20 ), the electrolyte is cooled within a temperature range in which a change in physical property of the electrolyte does not occur. 
     Also, in the cooling step (S 20 ), a connection point between the body part  10   a  and the gas pocket part  10   b  may be cooled faster than other points. That is, as illustrated in  FIG.  5   , a temperature at a point B, at which a boundary between the body part  10   a  and the gas pocket part  10   b  of the pouch  10  is disposed, is further lowered instantaneously to relatively further increase in viscosity of the electrolyte disposed at the point, thereby more efficiently decreasing in amount of electrolyte moving to the gas pocket part  10   b.    
     Second Embodiment 
     The present invention provides a degassing apparatus for removing a gas in a pouch as a second embodiment. 
     Referring to  FIG.  3    that illustrates a simplified schematic view of the degassing apparatus according to the present invention and  FIG.  4    that illustrates an internal configuration of a Peltier element  51  comprised in the degassing apparatus according to the present invention, the degassing apparatus according to the present invention additionally comprises a cooling device when compared to the degassing apparatus according to the related art. 
     That is, the degassing apparatus according to this embodiment is a degassing apparatus for a pouch  10  comprising a body part  10   a , on which an electrode assembly  11  is mounted, and into which an electrolyte is injected, and a gas pocket part  10   b  extending from the body part  10   a  to one side. The degassing apparatus comprises a lower mold  20  placed on a bottom surface of the body part  10   a  and an upper mold  30  descending to press a top surface of the body part  10   a  placed on the lower mold  20 . As illustrated in  FIG.  3   , at least one or more of the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30  may be connected or coupled to a cooling member  50  so as to be heat-exchanged, or the cooling member is directly mounted on at least one or more of the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30  to cool at least one or more of the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30 . 
     Thus, at least one or both of the upper mold  30  or the lower mold  20  cools the body part  10   a  when being in contact with the body part  10   a  to cool the electrolyte injected into the body part  10   a , and the cooled electrolyte increases in viscosity in proportion to the decreasing temperature. 
     Furthermore, the degassing apparatus according to this embodiment further comprises a gas inhaler  40  that suctions a gas by inserting an end of the inhaler  40  into the gas pocket part  10   b  when the lower mold  20  and the upper mold  30  press the body part  10   a.    
     The cooling member  50  is not particularly limited as long as the cooling member  50  is a device capable of rapidly performing the cooling, but in the present invention, the cooling member  50  comprises a Peltier element  51 , in which the cooling is relatively easily controlled by adjusting an amount of current, and cooling performance is excellent, and particularly, instantaneous cooling is capable of being performed. 
     The Peltier element  51  may be configured to be cooled when the current is applied. That is, the Peltier element  51  is an element using a Peltier effect that generates a temperature difference by generating and absorbing heat at both sides at the same time when a potential difference occurs. The Peltier element  51  is configured to have a cooling effect by taking energy away from one metal in order that electrons move between two metals, in which the potential difference occurs. In the Peltier element  51  according to the present invention, a p-type semiconductor  56  and an n-type semiconductor  57  are disposed between two plates  54  and  55 , and when current is applied to the p-type semiconductor  56  and the n-type semiconductor  57  through cables  52 ,  53 , energy of one plate  54  is taken away to be cooled. 
     A plurality of Peltier elements  51  may be directly attached to the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30  so as to be cooled or may be heat-exchanged with the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30  through a refrigerant or the like so as to be cooled. 
     However, in order to improve the cooling efficiency, it is more preferable that a method in which the plate  54 , in which the cooling is performed, of the Peltier element  51  is directly attached to the upper mold  30  or the lower mold  20 . 
     Furthermore, the degassing apparatus according to this embodiment may be configured so that a specific portion of the body part  10   a  is cooled more rapidly. That is, the plurality of the Peltier elements  51  may be arranged at regular intervals on a surface of the upper mold  30  or a surface of the lower mold  20 , which is in contact with the body part  10   a . Here, the Peltier element having a larger output at a specific portion B may be disposed to more quickly cool the specific portion of the body part  10   a  than other portions, or the Peltier elements  51  are disposed more densely at the specific portion to more quickly cool the specific portion (for example, a portion ‘B’ in  FIG.  5   ) of the body part  10   a.    
     The Peltier element  51  may be installed only on any one of the lower mold  20  or the upper mold  30 , but it is preferable to be installed on both the upper mold  30  and the lower mold  20  so as to perform the rapid cooling. Also, if the Peltier element  51  has to be installed on only one place, it is more preferable to be installed on the lower mold  20  having a relatively longer contact time with the body part  10   a  than to be installed on the upper mold  30 . 
     In this embodiment, when the viscosity of the electrolyte before the cooling is ‘X’, the cooling member  50  may be configured to cool the electrolyte until the viscosity of the electrolyte after the cooling becomes ‘1.5×’ or more. 
     For example, when a temperature of the electrolyte before the cooling is 20 degrees to 30 degrees, a temperature of the electrolyte after the cooling may be cooled to a temperature of 0 degree to 15 degrees by the cooling member  50 . For example, if the viscosity is 4.37 Pa.s when a temperature of the electrolyte before the cooling is 25° C., the cooling may be performed up to a specific temperature at which the viscosity is 6.56 Pa·s or more. 
     For reference, the electrolyte may have a viscosity of 6.80 Pa·s at a temperature of 10° C. That is, when the electrolyte is cooled by a temperature of 15° C. (from 20° C. to 15° C.), the viscosity increases by approximately 56%. When the electrolyte is pressed, since the movement of the electrolyte solution having the increasing viscosity is reduced when compared to a case in which the temperature is relatively high. Thus, the movement of the electrolyte to the gas pocket part  10   b  of the pouch  10  may be prevented. 
     In the present invention, the gas inhaler  40  may suction a gas after the temperature of the electrolyte is cooled to a predetermined reference temperature or more, and the end of the gas inhaler  40  may be inserted into the gas pocket part  10   b  before cooling the electrolyte. However, it is preferable to be configured so that the end of the gas inhaler  40  is inserted after cooling the electrolyte as much as possible. 
     In the present invention having the above configuration, since the cooling liquid is sufficiently cooled before the gas is suctioned to increase in viscosity, the movement of the gas to the gas pocket part  10   b  may be suppressed as much as possible to prevent the electrolyte from being unnecessarily discharged. 
     In the present invention, since the cooling of the electrolyte is adjusted according to the change in cooling rate and viscosity of the electrolyte, the secondary batteries having various specifications may be applied. 
     In addition, in the present invention, the viscosity of the electrolyte at the specific point (particularly, the point that is close to the boundary with the gas pocket part  10   b ) may further increase by cooling the specific point more rapidly, and thus, the amount and speed of the electrolyte moving to the gas pocket part  10   b  may be delayed 
     In addition, the degassing apparatus according to the present invention may comprise the Peltier element  51  that is cooled when the current is applied so that the cooling of the electrolyte is performed relatively simply and quickly through the control of the current, and the cooling may be more efficiently controlled according to the viscosity of the electrolyte. 
     While the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE SYMBOLS 
     
         
         
           
               10 : Pouch ( 10   a : body part,  10   b : Gas pocket part) 
               20 : Lower mold 
               30 : Upper mold 
               40 : Gas inhaler 
               50 : Cooling device