Understanding the Role of Conductive Binders in Li-Air Batteries

PROJECT NUMBER: 69

AUTHOR: Sarena Nguyen, Chemical and Biological Engineering | MENTOR: Steven DeCaluwe, Mechanical Engineering

ABSTRACT

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Lithium-air batteries have the potential to revolutionize electric vehicle technology and performance. Theoretically, these batteries have a high energy density of 3500 Wh/kg, however, issues with material instability cause them to have short lifespans, making it difficult for commercialization. One way to increase the energy efficiency of Li-O2 batteries and decrease the voltage gap between charge and discharge is to add a catalyst. Though many papers have been published on novel catalysts, many experiments lack homogeneity and cathode composition varies greatly.
The cathode is generally composed of a catalyst, a carbon conductor, and binder. By varying the concentration of either component, this project aims to find the optimal binder, catalyst and carbon ratio for cell performance. Next, this project aims to find the optimal binder to catalyst to carbon ratio to maximize battery performance. Discharge capacity, voltage gap, and Coulombic efficiency are used as performance metrics for this experiment.

VISUAL PRESENTATION

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AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

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Sarena Nguyen is currently a junior studying Chemical Engineering with a minor in Energy at Mines. She is working with Professor DeCaluwe and Melodie Chen-Glasser in the Mechanical Engineering department on Li-Air batteries. She has previously worked on projects for wastewater treatment research and she hopes to be able to research energy storage technologies in the future.

Sponsored by Phillips 66