Chemical Engineering September 2022 - 9

A new electrolyte supercharges
sodium-ion batteries
S
odium-ion batteries have many
advantages
over
lithium-ion
batteries due to sodium's abundance
and low cost. However,
there are several performance challenges
to overcome with sodium-ion
batteries because there is typically a
tradeoff between energy density and
lifecycle. Now, a research team from
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
(PNNL; Richland, Wash.; www.pnnl.
gov) has discovered an enhanced battery
chemistry that extends the lifecycle
of sodium-ion batteries while also reducing
their safety hazard. Led by JiGuang
(Jason) Zhang, laboratory fellow
at PNNL, the research focused on the
battery's solid-electrolyte interface (SEI),
which is a barrier layer that protects the
anode. " One of the main challenges for
high-energy sodium-ion batteries is the
dissolution of the anode SEI, especially
when a high-voltage cathode is used.
Our new electrolyte largely reduces the
degradation of the SEI layer, so the battery
maintains a much longer lifecycle at
high voltages, " explains Zhang.
The electrolyte was designed with a
solvent with low-dielectric constant (tris
2,2,2-trifluoroethyl phosphate [TFP]),
which has a low solvability for the SEI
layer, and an electrolyte salt (NaFSI) that
promotes the formation of a stronger
protection layer. Laboratory tests demonstrated
that the new design retained
90% of its cell capacity after 300 cycles
at 4.2 V, which is notably higher than
most sodium-ion batteries.
Furthermore, the new design offers
improved safety features. " TFP,
the main solvent of the electrolyte, is
a fire-extinguishing organic solvent,
which largely reduces the potential
risks of fire hazards, " adds Zhang, noting
that work is still underway to verify
the safety of larger-scale batteries. The
next development step will be further
improving the cycle life of the batteries
and scale up from small coin cells
to larger pouch cells, which the team
expects will attract more commercial
interest in the batteries.
than N2. According to Mastalerz,
these numbers represent " extraordinarily
high " selectivities to
bind such PFCs. The study was
described in a recent issue of Advanced
Materials.
BIOCATALYSIS
Aa major challenge in biocatalysis
is that the most commonly used
microbes, such as probiotics and
non-pathogenic strains of Escherichia
coli, are not necessarily
good at forming biofilms, the
growth-promoting ecosystems
that form a protective micro-environment
around communities of
microbes and increase their resilience
and so boost productivity.
This problem is normally solved
by genetic engineering, but researchers
from the University of
Birmingham (U.K.; www.bham.
ac.uk) have found an alternative
method to bypass this costly and
time-consuming process.
As described in a recent issue
of Materials Horizons, the researchers
screened a library
of synthetic polymers for their
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Chemical Engineering September 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Chemical Engineering September 2022
