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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 199 records · Page 11
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Layered Electrode Architectures Enabled by Holey Graphene Hosts

Battery electrodes are typically prepared using a slurry-based method, where high boiling point organic solvents are typically used with a polymer binder to disperse active electrode materials and conductive carbon additives followed by casting into current collector sheets. In this process, the use of organic solvents are environmentally hazardous, energy intensive, and time-consuming, while polymeric binders add weight and can undergo parasitic reactions during battery cycling. Here we discuss the use of a unique conductive carbon nanomaterial, namely holey graphene, as a multifunctional host that can be processed via a facile, solvent-free, binder-free, cold pressing method to prepare electrodes with unique architectures. This approach can accommodate a broad range of battery chemistries, such as lithium oxygen/carbon dioxide (Li-O2/CO2), lithium sulfur/selenium (Li-S/Se), and various lithium ion chemistries. The successful use of dry, cold compression allows the convenient modification of electrode mass loading with unique architectures containing active materials randomly mixed or layered with single or multiple layers of one or more active materials. In the conventional slurry-based electrode fabrication method, it is difficult, if not impossible, to achieve such layered architectures. In particular, the layered electrode architectures from the dry, cold press approach are easy to fabricate without significantly sacrificing device performance, and are amenable to continuous roll-to-roll dry processing. In addition, these architectures offer unprecedented perspectives on the battery material loading vs. utilization efficiency, as well as enabling unique characterization opportunities to advance mechanistic understanding of various battery chemistries. Potential applications of this unique electrode fabrication approach for solid-state batteries will also be discussed.

holey graphene, batteries, electrode architecture,↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Hierarchical screening for Li-based solid electrolytes using fast, interpretable machine-learned potentials

Li-based solid-state electrolyte materials enable safer, all-solid-state batteries but the computational search for candidates with favorable stability and Li-ion conductivity is challenging due to the size of the search space and the cost of evaluating transport properties with ab initio methods. The prohibitive cost of high-throughput screening with DFT has lead to the development of surrogate models using geometric analysis, empirical potentials, and descriptors for ionic transport. Here, I will discuss a hierarchical screening approach for identifying promising materials using a combination of density functional theory, bond-valence methods, and machine learning potentials generated with the Ultra-Fast Force Fields (UF3) framework. We show how the inexpensive bond-valence method can be used to guide the generation of training samples for machine learning, in addition to filtering candidates. Finally, we apply the hierarchical workflow to screen for ionic conductivity across a database of Li-containing compounds.

Materials discovery↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Hierarchical Screening for Li-Based Solid Electrolytes Using Fast, Interpretable Machine-Learned Potentials

Li-based solid-state electrolyte materials enable safer, all-solid-state batteries but the computational search for candidates with favorable stability and Li-ion conductivity is challenging due to the size of the search space and the cost of evaluating transport properties with ab initio methods. The prohibitive cost of high-throughput screening with DFT has lead to the development of surrogate models using geometric analysis, empirical potentials, and descriptors for ionic transport. Here, I will discuss a hierarchical screening approach for identifying promising materials using a combination of density functional theory, bond-valence methods, and machine learning potentials generated with the Ultra-Fast Force Fields (UF3) framework. We show how the inexpensive bond-valence method can be used to guide the generation of training samples for machine learning, in addition to filtering candidates.

Materials discovery↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Computational Tools to Design Molten Salt Electrolytes for High-Temperature Environments

Current Li-ion batteries are designed for a small operating window of 5 °C to 55 °C. Modifications to the electrolyte for operation in Mars atmosphere extended this range on the lower bound to ~ -40 °C. These operating-temperature ranges are far from those presented in high-temperature environments, such as the Venus surface, where temperatures are around 450 °C. Protecting the state-of-the-art Li-ion batteries require insulations that decreases the volumetric capacity and limiting the operational time-window. These unique challenges require a paradigm shift in materials used for designing high-temperature batteries. Molten salt electrolyte-based batteries offer a plausible route to designing high-temperature batteries. ZEBRA batteries are known to be one of the safest energy storage devices operating at 270-350 °C. Nitrate based eutectics, operating at 150 °C have also been used in Li-O2 batteries. In this study, we will examine molten-salt electrolyte transport and electrochemical properties using first-principles computations and benchmark against experiments. Further, we will present thermodynamics-based models for designing and predicting melting point of molten salt mixtures. Based on these computational tools, new molten salt mixtures designed with desired operating temperatures and electrochemical windows will be presented. Implications of these new eutectics in the context of high-temperature environment exploration will also be discussed.

Balachandran Radhakrishnan↗
NASA NTRS1985

Design Evaluation of High Reliability Lithium Batteries

Within one year, a lithium battery design can be qualified for device use through the application of accelerated discharge testing, calorimetry measurements, real time tests and other supplemental testing. Materials and corrosion testing verify that the battery components remain functional during expected battery life. By combining these various methods, a high reliability lithium battery can be manufactured for applications which require zero defect battery performance.

Buchman, R. C.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Center for Space Power, Texas A and M University

Johnson Controls is a 106 year old company employing 42,000 people worldwide with $4.7 billion annual sales. Though we are new to the aerospace industry we are a world leader in automobile battery manufacturing, automotive seating, plastic bottling, and facilities environment controls. The battery division produces over 24,000,000 batteries annually under private label for the new car manufacturers and the replacement market. We are entering the aerospace market with the nickel hydrogen battery with the help of NASA's Center for Space Power at Texas A&M. Unlike traditional nickel hydrogen battery manufacturers, we are reaching beyond the space applications to the higher volume markets of aircraft starting and utility load leveling. Though space applications alone will not provide sufficient volume to support the economies of scale and opportunities for statistical process control, these additional terrestrial applications will. For example, nickel hydrogen batteries do not have the environmental problems of nickel cadmium or lead acid and may someday start your car or power your electric vehicle. However you envision the future, keep in mind that no manufacturer moves into a large volume market without fine tuning their process. The Center for Space Power at Texas A&M is providing indepth technical analysis of all of the materials and fabricated parts of our battery as well as thermal and mechanical design computer modeling. Several examples of what we are doing with nickel hydrogen chemistry to lead to these production efficiencies are presented.

Jones, Ken↗
NASA NTRS2015

SiLix-C Nanocomposites

For this Phase II project, Superior Graphite Co., in collaboration with the Georgia Institute of Technology and Streamline Nanotechnologies, Inc., developed, explored the properties of, and demonstrated the enhanced capabilities of novel nanostructured SiLix-C anodes. These anodes can retain high capacity at a rapid 2-hour discharge rate and at 0 C when used in Li-ion batteries. In Phase I, these advanced anode materials had specific capacity in excess of 1,000 mAh/g, minimal irreversible capacity losses, and stable performance for 20 cycles at C/1. The goals in Phase II were to develop and apply a variety of novel nanomaterials, fine-tune the properties of composite particles at the nanoscale, optimize the composition of the anodes, and select appropriate binder and electrolytes. In order to achieve a breakthrough in power characteristics of Li-ion batteries, the team developed new nanostructured SiLix-C anode materials to offer up to 1,200 mAh/g at C/2 at 0 C.

Henry, Francois↗
NASA NTRS1996

Sol-gel Technology and Advanced Electrochemical Energy Storage Materials

Advanced materials play an important role in the development of electrochemical energy devices such as batteries, fuel cells, and electrochemical capacitors. The sol-gel process is a versatile solution for use in the fabrication of ceramic materials with tailored stoichiometry, microstructure, and properties. This processing technique is particularly useful in producing porous materials with high surface area and low density, two of the most desirable characteristics for electrode materials. In addition,the porous surface of gels can be modified chemically to create tailored surface properties, and inorganic/organic micro-composites can be prepared for improved material performance device fabrication. Applications of several sol-gel derived electrode materials in different energy storage devices are illustrated in this paper. V2O5 gels are shown to be a promising cathode material for solid state lithium batteries. Carbon aerogels, amorphous RuO2 gels and sol-gel derived hafnium compounds have been studied as electrode materials for high energy density and high power density electrochemical capacitors.

Chung-tse Chu↗
NASA NTRS1984

Characterization of physiochemical properties of polymeric and electrochemical materials for aerospace flight

Nickel-cadmium rechargeable batteries are a vital and reliable energy storage source for aerospace applications. As the demand for longer life and more reliable space batteries increases, the understanding and solving of cell aging factors and mechanisms become essential. Over the years, many cell designs and manufacturing process changes have been developed and implemented. Cells fabricated with various design features were life cycled in a simulated low-Earth orbit regime. Following the test program, a comprehensive electrochemical analysis of cell components was undertaken to study cell degradation mechanisms. Discharge voltage degradation or voltage plateau has been observed during orbit cycling, but, its cause and explanation have been the subject of much discussion. A Hg/HgO reference electrode was used to monitor the reference versus each electrode potential during the discharge of a cycled cell. The results indicate that the negative electrode was responsible for the voltage plateau. Cell analysis revealed large crystals of cadmium hydroxide on the surface of the negative electrode and throughout the separator.

Rock, M.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Control of internal and external short circuits in lithium batteries using a composite thermal switch

A composite material has been developed, consisting of a blend of metal and fluorocarbon particles, which behaves as an electronic conductor at room temperature and which abruptly becomes an insulator at a predetermined temperature. This switching behavior results from the difference in thermal expansion coefficients between the conductive and non-conductive portions of the composite. This material was applied as a thin film between the carbon cathode in Li/SOCl2 cells, and the metallic cathode current collector. Using test articles incorporating this feature it was shown that lithium cells externally heated or internally heated during a short circuit lost rate capability and the ability to overheat well below the melting point of lithium (180 C). Thus, during an internal or external cell short circuit, the potential for thermal runaway involving reactions of molten lithium is avoided.

Mcdonald, Robert C.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Hairy carbon electrodes studied by cyclic voltammetry and battery discharge testing

Hairy carbon is a new material developed by growing submicron carbon filaments on conventional carbon substrates. Typical substrate materials include carbon black, graphite powder, carbon fibers, and glassy carbon. A catalyst is used to initiate hair growth with carbonaceous gases serving as the carbon source. To study the electrochemical behavior of hairy carbons, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and discharge testing were conducted. In both cases, hairy carbon results surpassed those of the substrate material alone.

Chung, Deborah D. L.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Advanced rechargeable sodium batteries with novel cathodes

Various high energy density rechargeable batteries are being considered for future space applications. Of these, the sodium-sulfur battery is one of the leading candidates. The primary advantage is the high energy density (760 W h/kg theoretical). Energy densities in excess of 180 W h/kg have been realized in practical batteries. More recently, cathodes other than sulfur are being evaluated. Various new cathode materials are presently being evaluated for use in high energy density sodium batteries for advanced space applications. The approach is to carry out basic electrochemical studies of these materials in a sodium cell configuration in order to understand their fundamental behaviors. Thus far, the studies have focussed on alternative metal chlorides such as CuCl2 and organic cathode materials such as TCNE.

Di Stefano, S.↗
NASA NTRS2015

High-Capacity, High-Voltage Composite Oxide Cathode Materials

This SBIR project integrates theoretical and experimental work to enable a new generation of high-capacity, high-voltage cathode materials that will lead to high-performance, robust energy storage systems. At low operating temperatures, commercially available electrode materials for lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries do not meet energy and power requirements for NASA's planned exploration activities. NEI Corporation, in partnership with the University of California, San Diego, has developed layered composite cathode materials that increase power and energy densities at temperatures as low as 0 degC and considerably reduce the overall volume and weight of battery packs. In Phase I of the project, through innovations in the structure and morphology of composite electrode particles, the partners successfully demonstrated an energy density exceeding 1,000 Wh/kg at 4 V at room temperature. In Phase II, the team enhanced the kinetics of Li-ion transport and electronic conductivity at 0 degC. An important feature of the composite cathode is that it has at least two components that are structurally integrated. The layered material is electrochemically inactive; however, upon structural integration with a spinel material, the layered material can be electrochemically activated and deliver a large amount of energy with stable cycling.

Hagh, Nader M.↗
NASA NTRS2009

NiF2/NaF:CaF2/Ca Solid-State High-Temperature Battery Cells

Experiments and theoretical study have demonstrated the promise of all-solid-state, high-temperature electrochemical battery cells based on NiF2 as the active cathode material, CaF2 doped with NaF as the electrolyte material, and Ca as the active anode material. These and other all-solid-state cells have been investigated in a continuing effort to develop batteries for instruments that must operate in environments much hotter than can be withstood by ordinary commercially available batteries. Batteries of this type are needed for exploration of Venus (where the mean surface temperature is about 450 C), and could be used on Earth for such applications as measuring physical and chemical conditions in geothermal wells and oil wells. All-solid-state high-temperature power cells are sought as alternatives to other high-temperature power cells based, variously, on molten anodes and cathodes or molten eutectic salt electrolytes. Among the all-solid-state predecessors of the present NiF2/NaF:CaF2/Ca cells are those described in "Solid-State High-Temperature Power Cells" (NPO-44396), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 32, No. 5 (May 2008), page 40. In those cells, the active cathode material is FeS2, the electrolyte material is a crystalline solid solution of equimolar amounts of Li3PO4 and LiSiO4, and the active anode material is Li contained within an alloy that remains solid in the intended high operational temperature range.

West, William↗
NASA NTRS1972

Progress in electrochemical storage for battery systems

Efforts to improve electrochemical systems for space use relate to: (1) improvement of conventional systems; (2) development of fuel cells to practical power systems; and (3) a search for new systems that provide gains in energy density but offer comparable life and performance as conventional systems. Improvements in sealed conventional systems resulted in the areas of materials, charge control methods, cell operations and battery control, and specific process controls required during cell manufacture. Fuel-cell systems have been developed for spacecraft but the use of these power plants is limited. For present and planned flights, nickel-cadmium, silver-zinc, and silver-cadmium systems will be used. Improvements in nickel-cadmium batteries have been applied in medical and commercial areas.

Ford, F. E.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Probe design and system integration

The feasibility of a common Saturn Uranus probe design is studied by considering the extreme atmospheres of both planets and their effects on a Pioneer spacecraft. It seems that approximately 85 percent of existing hardware can be used in an Uranus probe design, assuming that the design entry g level is somewhat reduced from current requirements. Additional development efforts include heat shielding, remotely activated batteries, mass spectrometer optimization, thermal insulation materials and high g packaging concepts.

Carroll, P.↗