Effect of Lithium Borate Additives on Cathode Film Formation in LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4/Li Cells.

A direct comparison of the cathode-electrolyte interface (CEI) generated on high-voltage LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 cathodes with three different lithium borate electrolyte additives, lithium bis(oxalato)borate (LiBOB), lithium 4-pyridyl trimethyl borate (LPTB), and lithium catechol dimethyl borate (LiCDMB), has been conducted. The lithium borate electrolyte additives have been previously reported to improve the capacity retention and efficiency of graphite/LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 cells due to the formation of passivating CEI. Linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) suggests that incorporation of the lithium borates into 1.2 M LiPF6 in EC/EMC (3/7) electrolyte results in borate oxidation on the cathode surface at high potential. The reaction of the borates on the cathode surface leads to an increase in impedance as determined by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), consistent with the formation of a cathode surface film. Ex-situ surface analysis of the electrode via a combination of SEM, TEM, IR-ATR, XPS, and high energy XPS (HAXPES) suggests that oxidation of all borate additives results in deposition of a passivation layer on the surface of LiNi0.5Mn1.5O4 which inhibits transition metal ion dissolution from the cathode. The passivation layer thickness increases as a function of additive structure LiCDMB > LPTB > LiBOB. The results suggest that the CEI thickness can be controlled by the structure and reactivity of the electrolyte additive.

Hard X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HAXPES) Investigation of the Silicon Solid Electrolyte Interphase (SEI) in Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Binder-free silicon (BF-Si) nanoparticle anodes were cycled with 1.2 M LiPF6 in ethylene carbonate (EC), fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC), or EC with 15% FEC (EC:FEC), extracted from cells and analyzed by Hard X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (HAXPES). All of the electrolytes generate an SEI which is integrated with Si containing species. The EC and EC:FEC electrolytes result in the generation of LixSiOy after the first cycle while LixSiOy is only observed after five cycles for the FEC electrolyte. The SEI initially generated from the EC electrolyte is primarily composed of lithium ethylene dicarbonate (LEDC) and LiF. However, after five cycles, the composition changes, especially near the surface of silicon because of decomposition of the LEDC. The SEI generated from the EC:FEC electrolytes contains LEDC, LiF, and poly(FEC) and small changes are observed upon additional cycling. The SEI generated with the FEC electrolyte contains LiF and poly(FEC) and small changes are observed upon additional cycling. The stability of the SEI correlates with the observed capacity retention of the cells.