A comparative analysis of the influence of hydrofluoroethers as diluents on solvation structure and electrochemical performance in non-flammable electrolytes

To enhance battery safety, it is of utmost importance to develop non-flammable electrolytes. An emerging concept within this research field is the development of localized highly concentrated electrolytes (LHCEs). This type of liquid electrolyte relies on the concept of highly concentrated electrolytes (HCEs), but possesses lower viscosity, improved conductivity and reduced costs due to the addition of diluent solvents. In this work, two different hydrofluoroethers, i.e., bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) ether (BTFE) and 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl ether (TTE), are studied as diluents in a phosphate-based non-flammable liquid electrolyte. These two solvents were added to a highly concentrated electrolyte of 3.0 M lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) in triethyl phosphate (TEP) whereby the salt concentration was diluted to 1.5 M. The solvation structures of the HCE and LHCE were studied by means of Raman spectroscopy and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, where the latter was shown to be essential to provide more detailed insights. By using molecular dynamics simulations, it was shown that a highly concentrated Li+-TEP solvation sheath is formed, which can be protected by the diluents TTE and BTFE. These simulations have also clarified the energetic interaction between the components in the LHCE, which supports the experimental results from the viscosity and the NMR measurements. By performing non-covalent interaction analysis (NCI) it was possible to show the main contributions of the observed chemical shifts, which indicated that TTE has a stronger effect on the solvation structure than BTFE. Moreover, the electrochemical performances of the electrolytes were evaluated in half-cells (Li|NMC622, Li|graphite), full-cells (NMC622|graphite) and Li metal cells (Li|Cu). Galvanostatic cycling has shown that the TTE based electrolyte performs better in full-cells and Li-metal cells, compared to the BTFE based electrolyte. Operando pressure measurements have indicated that no significant amount of gases is evolved in NMC622|graphite cells using the here presented LHCEs, while a cell with 1.0 M LiFSI in TEP displayed clear formation of gaseous products in the first cycles. The formation of gaseous products is accompanied by solvent co-intercalation, as shown by operando XRD, and quick cell failure. This work provides insights on understanding the solvation structure of LHCEs and highlights the relationship between electrochemical performance and pressure evolution.

Automated summary

To enhance battery safety, the development of non-flammable electrolytes is crucial. A new concept in this field is the use of localized highly concentrated electrolytes (LHCEs), which have lower viscosity, improved conductivity, and reduced costs compared to highly concentrated electrolytes (HCEs) due to the addition of diluent solvents. This study investigates the solvation structures of LHCEs using Raman spectroscopy and NMR spectroscopy, and molecular dynamics simulations reveal the formation of a highly concentrated Li+-TEP solvation sheath that can be protected by the diluents TTE and BTFE. The electrochemical performances of the LHCEs are evaluated in various cell configurations, with the TTE-based electrolyte performing better in full-cells and Li-metal cells compared to the BTFE-based electrolyte.