Electrochemical evaluation of alternate anode materials for ambient temperature secondary Li cells

Some progress has been made at JPL to identify alternative anode materials to improve the cycle life and safety of ambient temperature secondary lithium cells. Graphite is one of the materials under investigation. Experimental results showed that graphite was able to accommodate the interstitial addition of 0.16 mole of lithium per mole of graphite, and the amount of Li corresponding to the capacity from x=0.045 to x=0.16 in Li_x can be reversibly cycled with negligible capacity loss. This reversible composition region is also a region with very low open circuit potential. In addition, electrode fabrication and the intercalation technique are also discussed. This information and electrochemical studies on other materials, such as Li_xMg₂Si and C₆₀, are presented