Investigation of cycling-induced microstructural degradation in silicon-based electrodes in lithium-ion batteries using X-ray nanotomography

[Display omitted] •Microstructural degradation of a Si electrode was investigated using X-ray nano-CT.•3D reconstructed electrode volumes were achieved at 150nm spatial resolution.•Particle cracking and phase transformation was seen to occur with increase cycling.•A low X-ray attenuating phase assoc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Electrochimica acta 2017-11, Vol.253, p.85-92
Main Authors: Taiwo, Oluwadamilola O., Loveridge, Melanie, Beattie, Shane D., Finegan, Donal P., Bhagat, Rohit, Brett, Daniel J.L., Shearing, Paul R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
3D imaging
Battery degradation
Computed tomography
Concentration (composition)
Cycles
Degradation
Electrodes
Lithium-ion batteries
Lithium-Ion battery cycling
Microstructure
Phase transitions
Phase volume fraction
Rechargeable batteries
Silicon
Silicon electrode
Tomography
X-ray nano-CT
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:[Display omitted] •Microstructural degradation of a Si electrode was investigated using X-ray nano-CT.•3D reconstructed electrode volumes were achieved at 150nm spatial resolution.•Particle cracking and phase transformation was seen to occur with increase cycling.•A low X-ray attenuating phase associated with Si degradation was distinctly resolved. The microstructural degradation of a composite silicon electrode at different stages in its cycle life was investigated in 3D using X-ray nano-computed tomography. A reconstructed volume of 36μm×27μm×26μm from the composite electrode was imaged in its pristine state and after 1, 10 and 100 cycles. Particle fracturing and phase transformation was observed within the electrode with increased cycling. In addition, a distinct, lower X-ray attenuating phase was clearly resolved, which can be associated with surface film formation resulting from electrolyte breakdown and with silicon particle phase transformation. Changes in quantified microstructural properties such as phase volume fraction and particle specific surface area were tracked. Electrode performance loss is associated with loss of active silicon. These imaging results further highlight the capability of high resolution X-ray tomography to investigate the role of electrode microstructure in battery degradation and failure.
ISSN:0013-4686
1873-3859
DOI:10.1016/j.electacta.2017.08.161