Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English en
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

High-performance self-healing and flame-retardant polymer materials for all-solid-state lithium metal batteries

Project description

Self-healing polymer films to overcome battery challenges

The adoption of electric vehicles has been a key driver for the Green Deal. New initiatives are now underway to develop next-generation energy vehicles. All-solid-state lithium metal batteries offer advantages such as improved safety, higher energy density, a wider temperature range, and better environmental adaptability. However, challenges remain, particularly at the interface between lithium metal and LLZTO, which suffers from high impedance, mechanical degradation, and other issues that limit performance. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the PolyMat4Bat project will create rapid self-healing, high-performance, and flame-retardant polymer films designed to sit between lithium metal and LLZTO. These films aim to overcome existing barriers and accelerate the development of all-solid-state lithium metal batteries.

Objective

The development of new energy vehicles is a strategic initiative addressing oil security, air pollution, and industrial upgrading, and is pivotal for achieving Europe's carbon neutrality goal by 2050. All-solid-state lithium metal batteries have significant advantages in energy density, safety, wide temperature range, and environmental adaptability. However, the interface between lithium metal and Li6.4La3Zr1.6Ta0.5O12 (LLZTO) still faces chanllenges, such as high impedance, side reactions, mechanical decay, lithium dendrites, and poor interfacial stability. Notably, the modification of this interface using self-healing polymers effectively alleviates the inevitable physical or chemical fatigue and interface damage, although it may introduce issues such as uneven Li+ nucleation and flammability. To address these challenges, the overarching goal of the ambitious yet feasible project (PolyMat4Bat) is to develop rapid self-healing, flame-retardant, and high-performance polymer films (CLSHPFs), which will be utilized between lithium metal and LLZTO. Specifically, this project will systematically investigate the self-healing mechanisms of CLSHPFs. The introduction of B-O bonds, Si-O bonds, and phosphorus-based structure is expected to enhance fire safety and chemical stability. Furthermore, electrochemical characterization, theoretical calculations, and in-situ/ex-situ characterization techniques (XPS, SEM, TEM, and Raman, etc) will be employed to elucidate the electrochemical reaction mechanisms, interface stability, dendrite growth inhibition, and Li+ deposition behavior. PolyMat4Bat is a typical multidisciplinary approach requiring complementary expertise from the host (flame-retardant molecular design, fire chemistry, polymer chemistry) and the researcher (electrodes design, battery assembly, and electrochemical characterization technologies), contributing to the achievement of the “Sustainable Development Goals” and “European Green Deal” of EU policies.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

Keywords

Programme(s)

Topic(s)

Funding Scheme

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

FUNDACION IMDEA MATERIALES
Net EU contribution
€ 194 074,56
Address
CALLE ERIC KANDEL 2 PARQUE CIENTIFICO Y TECNOLOGICO TECNOGETAFE
28906 Getafe
Spain
Region
Comunidad de Madrid Comunidad de Madrid Madrid
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost
No data