Ordered mixture of sulfurized-carbon with ionically conductive particles
AssigneeZeta Energy LLC
InventorsAbdul-Rahman Olabode Raji, Rodrigo Villegas Salvatierra, Tuo Wang
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Abstract
Described are active materials for storing metal cations, such as lithium ions, in a cathode of an electrochemical cell. The active materials comprise an ordered mixture of sulfurized carbon (SC) particles, smaller ionically conductive particles, and still smaller electrically conductive particles. In comparison with a random mixture, where SC particles are mixed with particles of another material, the ordered mixture creates discrete, solid composition of more than one type of guest particles on the perimeter of SC host particles for ionic and electronic conduction to and from the SC host particles.
Claims20
An electrode to store metal cations, the electrode comprising:
- sulfurized-carbon particles with an average sulfurized-carbon-particle surface area, the sulfurized-carbon particles to store the metal cations;
- each sulfurized-carbon particle including a conductive envelope comprising:
- electrically conductive domains in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface, the electrically conductive domains to conduct electrons to and from the sulfurized-carbon particle;
- and
- close packed ionically conductive particles in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface forming a continuous envelope around the sulfurized-carbon particle with gaps between adjacent ionically conductive particles sized to permit cation transport to the surface of the sulfurized-carbon particle, wherein the electrically conductive domains are predominantly located in valleys and interstices between the close-packed ionically conductive particles while remaining in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface, and wherein a median particle size of the ionically conductive particles is at least ten times a median particle size of the electrically conductive domains, the ionically conductive particles to conduct the metal cations to and from the sulfurized-carbon particle.
An electrochemical cell comprising:
- an anode to store a metal;
- an electrolyte in contact with the anode to conduct ions of the metal;
- and
- a cathode in contact with the electrolyte to store the ions of the metal, the cathode including:
- sulfurized-carbon particles with an average sulfurized-carbon-particle surface area, the sulfurized-carbon particles to store the ions, each sulfurized-carbon particle including a conductive envelope comprising:
- electrically conductive domains in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface, the electrically conductive domains to conduct electrons to and from the sulfurized-carbon particle;
- and
- close packed ionically conductive particles forming a continuous envelop around and in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface with gaps between adjacent ionically conductive particles sized to permit cation transport to the surface of the sulfurized-carbon particle, wherein the electrically conductive domains are predominantly located in valleys and interstices between the close-packed ionically conductive particles while remaining in contact with the sulfurized-carbon-particle surface and a median particle size of the ionically conductive particles is at least ten times a median particle size of the electrically conductive domains, the ionically conductive particles to conduct the ions of the metal to and from the sulfurized-carbon particle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.