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Low-volatile binder enables thermal shock-resistant thin-film cathodes for thermal batteries
  • +8
  • Yong Xie,
  • Liang Dong,
  • Xu Zhang,
  • Yong Cao,
  • Yan Cui,
  • Xiao Liu,
  • Yi Cui,
  • Chao Wang,
  • Hongfa Xiang,
  • Xuyong Feng,
  • Long Qie
Yong Xie
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Liang Dong
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Xu Zhang
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Yong Cao
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Yan Cui
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Xiao Liu
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Yi Cui
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering
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Chao Wang
China Academy of Engineering Physics Institute of Electronic Engineering

Corresponding Author:wangchao_1988924@126.com

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Hongfa Xiang
Hefei University of Technology
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Xuyong Feng
Hefei University of Technology
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Long Qie
Huazhong University of Science and Technology School of Material Science and Engineering
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Abstract

Manufacturing thin-film components is crucial for achieving high-efficiency and high-power thermal batteries (TBs). However, developing binders with low gas production at the operating temperature range of TBs (400−550 °C) has proven to be a significant challenge. Here we report the use of acrylic acid derivative terpolymer (LA136D) as a low-volatile binder for thin-film cathode fabrication and studied the chain scission and chemical bond-breaking mechanisms in pyrolysis. It is shown LA136D defers to random-chain scission and cross-linking chain scission mechanisms, which gifts it with a low proportion of volatile products (ψ, ψ=39.2wt%) at even up to 550 °C, well below those of the conventional PVDF (77.6wt%) and SBR (99.2wt%) binders. Surprisingly, LA136D contributes to constructing a thermal shock-resistant cathode due to the step-by-step bond-breaking process. This is beneficial for the overall performance of TBs. In a 130 s pulse discharging test, the thin-film cathodes exhibited a remarkable 440% reduction in polarization and 300% enhancement in the utilization efficiency of cathode materials, while with just a slight increase of 0.05 MPa in gas pressure compared with traditional “thick-film” cathode. Our work highlights the potential of LA136D as a low-volatile binder for thin-film cathodes and shows the feasibility of manufacturing high-efficiency and high-power TBs through polymer molecule engineering.
26 Jul 2023Submitted to Energy & Environmental Materials
27 Jul 2023Submission Checks Completed
27 Jul 2023Assigned to Editor
28 Jul 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
30 Jul 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
07 Aug 2023Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
09 Aug 20231st Revision Received
10 Aug 2023Submission Checks Completed
10 Aug 2023Assigned to Editor
10 Aug 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
14 Aug 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
22 Aug 2023Editorial Decision: Accept