Highly porous lithium-ion conducting solvent-free poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)/poly(ethyl methacrylate) based polymer blend electrolytes for Li battery applications

Plasticised polymer blend electrolytes based on poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVdF-co-HFP) and poly(ethyl methacrylate) (PEMA) were prepared for different lithium salts LiX (X=ClO4, CF3SO3, BE4 and N[CF3SO2](2)) using facile solution casting. To confirm the structures and complexations of the electrolyte films, the prepared electrolytes were subjected to XRD and FTIR analysis. TG-DTA was used to ascertain the thermal stability of the electrolytes, and the porous nature of the electrolytes was identified using scanning electron microscopy via ion-hopping conduction. AC impedance analysis was performed for all the electrolyte samples at various temperatures from 303 to 363 K. The results suggest that among the various lithium salts, LiN[CF3SO2](2)-based electrolytes exhibited the highest ionic conductivity (0.918 x 10(-3) S cm(-1)). The temperature dependence of the ionic conductivity also complies with the VTF relation. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.