Skip to main content

Probing Structure-Property Relationship of Energy Storage Materials Using Ex Situ and In Situ Dynamic Microscopy and Spectroscopy with High Spatial and Fast Temporal Resolution


EMSL Project ID
47714

Abstract

The specific aims of this project are to probe the structure-property relationship of next-generation energy materials (such as energy storage materials) under dynamic operating conditions with a range of spatial (down to atomic) and temporal (as fast as nanoseconds) resolution. This goal will be accomplished by developing concerted multiscale chemical imaging methodologies based on ex situ and in situ TEM, STEM, DTEM, electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS), energy-dispersed x-ray spectroscopy (EDS), STXM, and x-ray tomography. The specific tasks will focus on

(1) Dynamic structural evolution of electrode materials during the operation of the battery. The key issues are the structure-property relationship and its correlation to the charge and ion transport, lattice stability, chemical and structural evolution, stability of the SEI layer, and the capacity fading mechanisms. To resolve these issues, we will focus on Si anode and Li1.2Ni0.2Mn0.6O2 cathode material to probe the microstructural evolution accompanying the insertion and extraction of Li ions in the electrode, elucidate the Li-ion transport mechanism, spatial correlation of Li ion distribution, defect formation, accumulation, phase transformation, and their correlation to the deactivation mechanism of the active materials.

(2) Use these chemical imaging methods to understand the new chemistry for energy storage, with particular emphasis being placed on complex hierarchical nanostructures that consists of transition metal doped S particles with ligands and graphene materials in Li-S and Li-air battery system high capacity, high power, longer cyclability, and safe operation.

Project Details

Start Date
2012-11-02
End Date
2013-09-30
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Chongmin Wang
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Team Members

Gowri Manickam
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Beata Mehdi
Institution
University of Liverpool

Huolin Xin
Institution
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Guangwen Zhou
Institution
State University of New York at Binghamton

Nigel Browning
Institution
University of Liverpool

Ilke Arslan
Institution
Argonne National Laboratory

Meng Gu
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Yang He
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Vijayakumar Murugesan
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Theva Thevuthasan
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Related Publications

Genc A, L Kovarik, M Gu, H Cheng, P Plachinda, L Pullan, B Freitag, and CM Wang. 2013. "XEDS STEM Tomography For 3D Chemical Characterization Of Nanoscale Particles." Ultramicroscopy 131:24-32. doi:10.1016/j.ultramic.2013.03.023
Gu M, A Genc, I Belharouak, D Wang, K Amine, S Thevuthasan, DR Baer, J Zhang, ND Browning, J Liu, and CM Wang. 2013. "Nanoscale Phase Separation, Cation Ordering, and Surface Oxygen Chemistry in Pristine Li1.2Ni0.2Mn0.6O2 for Li-Ion Batteries." Chemistry of Materials 25(11):2319-2236. doi:10.1021/cm4009392