Mechanistic Insight into the Superoxide Induced Ring Opening in Propylene Carbonate Based Electrolytes using in Situ Surface-Enhanced Infrared Spectroscopy

Understanding the mechanistic details of the superoxide induced solvent degradation, is important in the development of stable electrolytes for lithium oxygen (Li-O-2) batteries. Propylene carbonate (PC) decomposition on a model electrode surface is studied here using in situ attenuated total reflectance surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy (ATR-SEIRAS). The sensitivity of the SEIRAS technique to the interfacial region allows investigation of subtle changes in the interface region during electrochemical reactions. Our SEIRAS studies show that the superoxide induced ring opening reaction of PC is determined by the electrolyte cation. Computational modeling of the proposed reaction pathway of superoxide with PC revealed a large difference in the activation energy barriers when Li+ was the countercation compared with tetraethylammonium (TEA(+)), due to the coordination of Li+ to the carbonate functionality. While the degradation of cyclic organic carbonates during the Li-O-2 battery discharge process is a well-established case, understanding these details are of significant importance toward a rational selection of the Li-O-2 battery electrolytes; our work signifies the use of SEIRAS technique in this direction.