Binder & slurry preparation: key factors to allow cycling <10bar of solid state Li-ion pouch cells
Résumé
Upscaling solid-state lithium batteries is a challenge because their fabrication requires a technically difficult step of solid-electrolyte separator assembly, and because the solid-state cells only cycle under high pressure so far. Here, we address both bottlenecks by assembling lithium-ion batteries based on argyrodite Li6PS5Cl as the electrolyte using a standard slurry coating process. Slurry coating requires the formulation of inks for the cathode, anode and separator, including a binder. We discuss the choice of a binder compatible with Li6PS5Cl, and its impact on ionic conductivity, a well-known limiting feature of solid state electrolytes. Polyisobutene as the binder and nanosilicon as the anode material facing LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NMC622) cathode allow realizing 10 cm2 pouch cells in a dry room by a double casting. Electrode casting is shown to improve greatly the cycling stability as compared to simple pressing. The all-coated cells, cycled at a pressure as low as 1 MPa over 150 cycles, show a better capacity retention than the pressed cells cycling under >100 MPa, as reported in the literature. We discuss the role of the binder and of the slurry preparation in this remarkable gain in stability and in cyclability under low pressure.