Lithium-Ion Batteries

The objective of our research is to design a suitable battery that can maintain its structural integrity while enduring extreme stresses and environments, such as a large temperature gradients and large forces. In order to achieve these goals, our work focuses on the incorporation of active battery components within structural composite architectures. This process has the ultimate goal of merging the power supply directly into the structure of unmanned air vehicles. By doing this, UAVs will be more functional and versatile due to massive volume, and potentially weight, reductions.

One route is to develop a solid-state Li-ion battery based on a glass-ceramic composite structure that can be reversibly operated above 4 V with >200 mAhg -1 discharge capacity at ~25°C. Our research focuses on the synthesis and characterization of solid-state Li-ion electrolytes and compatible solid-state electrode systems, and the incorporation of these solid-state batteries within the vehicle support structure.

Another route is to develop a composite multifunctional Li-ion battery with tunable mechanical properties depending on the composition and microstructure of the battery components. Combining the mechanical structure and the battery function into a single architecture permits improvements in performance not possible through the individual components. The design of composite multifunctional batteries for optimal performance involves precise selection of materials, architectures, and the interconnection between the battery components.