Designing Versatile Polymers for Lithium-Ion Battery Applications: A Review.

Beatriz Arouca Maia,Nuno Correia,Maria Helena Braga,Raquel M Santos,Natália Magalhães,Eunice Cunha

doi:10.3390/polym14030403

Abstract

Solid-state electrolytes are a promising family of materials for the next generation of high-energy rechargeable lithium batteries. Polymer electrolytes (PEs) have been widely investigated due to their main advantages, which include easy processability, high safety, good mechanical flexibility, and low weight. This review presents recent scientific advances in the design of versatile polymer-based electrolytes and composite electrolytes, underlining the current limitations and remaining challenges while highlighting their technical accomplishments. The recent advances in PEs as a promising application in structural batteries are also emphasized.

Highlights

Global development is highly dependent on energy
The current state of the art is mainly focused on the optimization of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)-based electrolytes or other traditional polymeric matrices; the need to develop new synthetic strategies for the discovery of innovative monomers and polymers is crucial to achieving future energy storage applications with tuned mechanical and electrochemical properties
This study demonstrated that ionic liquids and polymers can be applied to batteries, creating a new class of conductive electrolyte membranes that do not require the use of flammable plasticizers

Summary

Introduction

Global development is highly dependent on energy. Considering the impact of fossil fuels, global warming, and widespread pollution, the need for green, renewable, and alternative energy sources and storage systems is vital [1]. The cell of an electric battery is seemingly simple and easy to implement. It is based on the combination of two electrodes separated by an electrolyte to generate and store electric energy through a mechanism involving electrochemical reactions, with a spontaneous discharge and a charge requiring external electrical work. The first is driven by the necessity to align the electrochemical potentials of the electrodes and the latter serves the creation of the bias. Several approaches have been developed to optimize cells for different final applications and performance requirements [2]

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