# US 12,009,544 B2 · Battery including nanofibrous membrane

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- Number: US 12,009,544 B2
- Document ID: US12009544B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/219,342
- Filed: 2021-03-31
- Published: 2021-07-15
- Granted: 2024-06-11
- Earliest claimed: 2020-01-10
- Assignees: Lyten, Inc.
- Applicants: Lyten, Inc.
- Inventors: Bruce Lanning; Michael W. Stowell; Anurag Kumar; Hossein-Ali Ghezelbash
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12009544B2

## CPC

- C01B 32/152: Fullerenes
- H01M 50/44: Fibrous material
- C01B 32/182: Graphene
- H01M 4/86: Inert electrodes with catalytic activity, e.g. for fuel cells
- H01M 4/8605: {Porous electrodes}
- H01M 4/8657: {layered}
- H01M 4/8663: {Selection of inactive substances as ingredients for catalytic active masses, e.g. binders, fillers}
- H01M 4/8807: {Gas diffusion layers}
- H01M 12/02: Details (of electrodes H01M4/00; of non-active parts H01M50/00)
- H01M 12/06: with one metallic and one gaseous electrode
- H01M 12/08: composed of a half-cell of a fuel-cell type and a half-cell of the secondary-cell type
- H01M 50/414: Synthetic resins, e.g. thermoplastics or thermosetting resins
- C01P 2002/82: by IR- or Raman-data
- C01P 2006/12: Surface area
- G01N 33/0037: {NOx}
- G01N 33/0039: {O3}
- G01N 33/004: {CO or CO2}
- G01N 33/0044: {Sulphides, e.g. H2S}
- H01M 2004/8689: {Positive electrodes}
- H01M 2300/0002: Aqueous electrolytes
- Y02A 50/20: Air quality improvement or preservation, e.g. vehicle emission control or emission reduction by using catalytic converters
- Y02E 60/10: Energy storage using batteries
- C01B: NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS; COMPOUNDS THEREOF; {METALLOIDS OR COMPOUNDS THEREOF NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASS C01C}
- H01M: PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
- C01P: INDEXING SCHEME RELATING TO STRUCTURAL AND PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF SOLID INORGANIC COMPOUNDS
- G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q)
- Y02A: TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION

## Abstract

In some implementations, a metal air battery includes a metal anode, a cathode, a body, a nano-fibrous membrane (NFM), and a hygroscopic interphase layer disposed between the cathode and the NFM. The cathode may be a carbon-based textured scaffold including a plurality of macroporous pathways to distribute oxygen and water vapor supplied by ambient air throughout the cathode and into interior portions of the body. The NFM may include dry salts to produce a liquid electrolyte when exposed to water vapor delivered by the macroporous pathways of the cathode. The hygroscopic interphase layer may include a plurality of microporous pathways configured to drain excess quantities of the water vapor from the cathode and hydrate the dry salts with the water vapor.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A battery comprising:
a metal anode and a cathode disposed on opposite sides of a body, the cathode comprising a carbon-based textured scaffold including a plurality of macroporous pathways configured to distribute oxygen and water vapor supplied by ambient air throughout the cathode and into interior portions of the body;
a nano-fibrous membrane (NFM) disposed between the cathode and the metal anode, the NFM including one or more dry salts configured to produce a liquid electrolyte when exposed to water vapor delivered by the plurality of macroporous pathways of the cathode; and
a hygroscopic interphase layer disposed between the cathode and the NFM, the hygroscopic interphase layer including a plurality of microporous pathways configured to drain excess quantities of the water vapor from the cathode and hydrate the one or more dry salts with the water vapor.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the NFM is coated with a layer of carbon-based particles including one or more of sp3 diamond-like carbons or sp2 graphene.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the NFM comprises a metal-organic framework (MOF) including poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), polyamide (PA), micro-crystalline cellulose (MCC), or any combination thereof.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the NFM includes hygroscopic agents configured to absorb the water vapor delivered by the plurality of macroporous pathways of the cathode.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The battery of claim 4, wherein the NFM is further configured to hydrate the one or more dry salts with the water vapor.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The battery of claim 4, wherein the one or more dry salts include one or both of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) or potassium hydroxide (KOH), and the hygroscopic agents include one or more of glycerin/glycerol (C3H8O3), ethanol (C2H5OH), methanol (CH3OH), concentrated sulfuric acid (H2SO4), or concentrated sodium hydroxide (NaOH).

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the cathode is configured to guide transport of one or more ions in the liquid electrolyte in response to chemical reactions between the oxygen supplied by the ambient air and the water vapor.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The battery of claim 7, wherein one or more ions include hydroxide (OH—) ions, zincate (Zn(OH)42−) ions, or any combination thereof.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the NFM is formed of Chitosan or carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC).

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the carbon-based textured scaffold includes a plurality of catalytic sites configured to participate in one or more of an oxidation chemical reaction or a reduction chemical reaction.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The battery of claim 10, wherein the plurality of catalytic sites are doped with manganese, manganese oxide (MnO), and platinum.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the plurality of macroporous pathways are defined within an outer region of the cathode and include pores formed in an exterior surface of the cathode.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The battery of claim 12, wherein the pores have a diameter greater than approximately 50 nanometers.

### Claim 14 (depends on 12)

The battery of claim 12, wherein the carbon-based textured scaffold further includes a plurality of mesoporous pathways defined within an inner region of the cathode, the plurality of mesoporous pathways interconnected with the plurality of macroporous pathways and configured to drain excess water vapor from the cathode.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The battery of claim 14, wherein each mesoporous pathway has a diameter between approximately 2 and 30 nanometers.

### Claim 16 (depends on 14)

The battery of claim 14, wherein the mesoporous pathways are defined by a plurality of N-doped graphene particles fused together.

### Claim 17 (depends on 14)

The battery of claim 14, wherein the carbon-based textured scaffold is a graded three-dimensional (3D) macroporous-to-mesoporous open channeled graphene structure.

### Claim 18 (depends on 14)

The battery of claim 14, wherein the inner region of the cathode further includes a plurality of microporous pathways connected to the mesoporous pathways and interconnected with the macroporous pathways.

### Claim 19 (depends on 14)

The battery of claim 14, wherein the hygroscopic interphase layer has a thickness between approximately 2 and 10 nanometers, the inner region of the cathode has a thickness between approximately 0.1 and 50 microns, and the outer region of the cathode has a thickness between approximately 10 and 50 microns.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the carbon-based textured scaffold has a surface area greater than approximately 1,000 m2/g.

### Claim 21 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the hygroscopic interphase layer includes the liquid electrolyte.

### Claim 22 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, wherein the carbon-based textured scaffold comprises a three-dimensional (3D) graphene structure.

### Claim 23 (depends on 1)

The battery of claim 1, further comprising a barrier layer removably disposed over an exterior surface of the cathode.

### Claim 24 (depends on 23)

The battery of claim 23, wherein the barrier layer is configured to prevent ambient air from entering interior portions of the battery through the plurality of macroporous pathways.

### Claim 25 (depends on 24)

The battery of claim 24, wherein the barrier layer is configured to seal each of the plurality of macroporous pathways by at least partially covering the exterior surface of the cathode.

### Claim 26 (depends on 24)

The battery of claim 24, wherein the battery is configured to be activated in response to a removal of the barrier layer from the exterior surface of the cathode.

### Claim 27 (depends on 24)

The battery of claim 24, wherein removal of the barrier layer from the exterior surface of the cathode is configured to activate the battery by allowing the ambient air to enter interior portions of the battery through the plurality of macroporous pathways.