Executive Summary : | Lithium-ion batteries, essential in portable electronics, grid-energy storage, and hybrid/electric vehicles, contain flammable organic liquids, raising safety concerns. Recent fires in Tesla Model S and Boeing 787 Dreamliner airplanes have raised questions about the safety of using LIBs for transportation applications. The low energy density of these batteries has hindered the replacement of internal combustion vehicles with electric vehicles. Rechargeable lithium metal-based batteries are promising for energy storage devices due to their high theoretical capacity. However, the use of lithium metal in conjunction with liquid electrolytes is limited due to the formation of irregular dendrites during repeated charge-discharge cycles, leading to overheating and thermal runaway. Various approaches have been proposed to suppress dendrite nucleation, including lithium alloy anodes and electrolyte additives to improve uniformity at the solid-electrolyte interface (SEI). However, performance suffers due to reduced anode capacity and durability is lowered by additive consumption during SEI film formation. This work aims to overcome this challenge by preparing poly ethylene oxide-based solid polymer electrolytes, which can be cross-linked or integrated with superionic conductors, and evaluating their cycling performance with a lithium iron phosphate cathode at different C-rates and temperatures. |