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Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "D2: Electrochem: Batteries, Fuel Cells, Capacitors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 June 2023) | Viewed by 23695

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Special Issue Editor

Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Akron, Akron, OH 44325, USA
Interests: advanced energy systems; energy materials; precision manufacturing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The aim of this Special Issue is to present state-of-the-art knowledge and technology on lithium-ion batteries. This will include research focusing on new electrode materials; new electrolytes; new additive materials (binders, conductive materials, etc.); material characterization; and modeling at the atomistic-level, continuum-level, cell-level, pack-level, and system level as well as battery manufacturing; thermal management; battery management systems (BMS); a future beyond lithium-ion batteries; all-solid-state lithium batteries; battery recycling and remanufacturing; life-cycle analysis; economical and market analysis; environmental analysis; and special applications for lithium-ion batteries, among others. You are invited to send your paper for possible publication in this Special Issue of Energies.

Dr. Siamak Farhad
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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Keywords

  • Lithium-Ion battery
  • Materials
  • Solid-state battery
  • Battery manufacturing
  • Modeling & Computer Simulation
  • Recycling and remanufacturing

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

15 pages, 8806 KiB  
Article
Recycling and Reusing Copper and Aluminum Current-Collectors from Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Hamid Khatibi, Eman Hassan, Dominic Frisone, Mahdi Amiriyan, Rashid Farahati and Siamak Farhad
Energies 2022, 15(23), 9069; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15239069 - 30 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1694
Abstract
The global transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy systems continues to gain support from governments and investors. As a result, the demand for electric energy storage systems such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has substantially increased. This is a significant motivator for reassessing [...] Read more.
The global transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy systems continues to gain support from governments and investors. As a result, the demand for electric energy storage systems such as lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has substantially increased. This is a significant motivator for reassessing end-of-life strategies for these batteries. Most importantly, a strong focus on transitioning from landfilling to an efficient recycling system is necessary to ensure the reduction of total global emissions, especially those from LIBs. Furthermore, LIBs contain many resources which can be reused after recycling; however, the compositional and component complexity of LIBs poses many challenges. This study focuses on the recycling and reusing of copper (Cu) and aluminum (Al) foils, which are the anode and cathode current-collectors (CCs) of LIBs. For this purpose, methods for the purification of recycled Cu and Al CCs for reusing in LIBs are explored in this paper. To show the effectiveness of the purification, the recycled CCs are used to make new LIBs, followed by an investigation of the performance of the made LIBs. Overall, it seems that the LIBs’ CCs can be reused to make new LIBs. However, an improvement in the purification method is still recommended for future work to increase the new LIB cycling. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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15 pages, 2943 KiB  
Article
Experimentally Validated Coulomb Counting Method for Battery State-of-Charge Estimation under Variable Current Profiles
by Bachir Zine, Haithem Bia, Amel Benmouna, Mohamed Becherif and Mehroze Iqbal
Energies 2022, 15(21), 8172; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15218172 - 02 Nov 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2328
Abstract
Battery state of charge as an effective operational indicator is expected to play a crucial role in the advancement of electric vehicles, improving the battery capacity and energy utilization, avoiding battery overcharging and over-discharging, extending the battery’s useful lifespan, and extending the autonomy [...] Read more.
Battery state of charge as an effective operational indicator is expected to play a crucial role in the advancement of electric vehicles, improving the battery capacity and energy utilization, avoiding battery overcharging and over-discharging, extending the battery’s useful lifespan, and extending the autonomy of electric vehicles. In context, this article presents a computationally efficient battery state-of-charge estimator based on the Coulomb counting technique with constant and variable discharging current profiles for an actual battery pack in real time. A dedicated experimental bench is developed for validation purposes, where pivotal measurements such as current, voltage, and temperature are initially measured during the charging/discharging cycle. The state of charge thus obtained via these measurements is then compared with the value estimated through the battery generic model. Detailed analysis with conclusive outcomes is finally presented to exhibit the flexible nature of the proposed method in terms of the precise state-of-charge estimation for a variety of batteries, ranging from lead–acid batteries for domestic applications to Li-ion batteries inside electric vehicles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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15 pages, 4984 KiB  
Article
Modeling the Effect of Cell Variation on the Performance of a Lithium-Ion Battery Module
by Dongcheul Lee, Seohee Kang and Chee Burm Shin
Energies 2022, 15(21), 8054; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15218054 - 29 Oct 2022
Viewed by 2254
Abstract
Owing to the variation between lithium-ion battery (LIB) cells, early discharge termination and overdischarge can occur when cells are coupled in series or parallel, thereby triggering a decrease in LIB module performance and safety. This study provides a modeling approach that considers the [...] Read more.
Owing to the variation between lithium-ion battery (LIB) cells, early discharge termination and overdischarge can occur when cells are coupled in series or parallel, thereby triggering a decrease in LIB module performance and safety. This study provides a modeling approach that considers the effect of cell variation on the performance of LIB modules in energy storage applications for improving the reliability of the power quality of energy storage devices and efficiency of the energy system. Ohm’s law and the law of conservation of charge were employed as the governing equations to estimate the discharge behavior of a single strand composing of two LIB cells connected in parallel based on the polarization properties of the electrode. Using the modeling parameters of a single strand, the particle swarm optimization algorithm was adopted to predict the discharge capacity and internal resistance distribution of 14 strands connected in series. Based on the model of the LIB strand to predict the discharge behavior, the effect of cell variation on the deviation of the discharge termination voltage and depth of discharge imbalance was modeled. The validity of the model was confirmed by comparing the experimental data with the modeling results. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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14 pages, 1741 KiB  
Article
Non-Invasive Detection of Lithium-Metal Battery Degradation
by Pietro Iurilli, Luigi Luppi and Claudio Brivio
Energies 2022, 15(19), 6904; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15196904 - 21 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1618
Abstract
The application of Lithium Metal Batteries (LMBs) as secondary cells is still limited due to dendrite degradation mechanisms arising with cycling and responsible for safety risk and early cell failure. Studies to prevent and suppress dendritic growth using state-of-the-art materials are in continuous [...] Read more.
The application of Lithium Metal Batteries (LMBs) as secondary cells is still limited due to dendrite degradation mechanisms arising with cycling and responsible for safety risk and early cell failure. Studies to prevent and suppress dendritic growth using state-of-the-art materials are in continuous development. Specific detection techniques can be applied to verify the internal condition of new LMB chemistries through cycling tests. In this work, six non-invasive and BMS-triggerable detection techniques are investigated to anticipate LMB failures and to lay the basis for innovative self-healing mechanisms. The novel methodology is based on: (i) defining detection parameters to track the evolution of cell aging, (ii) defining a detection algorithm and applying it to cycling data, and (iii) validating the algorithm in its capability to detect failure. The proposed methodology is applied to Li||NMC pouch cells. The main outcomes of the work include the characterization results of the tested LMBs under different cycling conditions, the detection techniques performance evaluation, and a sensitivity analysis to identify the most performing parameter and its activation threshold. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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15 pages, 5160 KiB  
Article
Effects of Coating on the Electrochemical Performance of a Nickel-Rich Cathode Active Material
by Eman Hassan, Mahdi Amiriyan, Dominic Frisone, Joshua Dunham, Rashid Farahati and Siamak Farhad
Energies 2022, 15(13), 4886; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15134886 - 03 Jul 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1784
Abstract
Due to their safety and high power density, one of the most promising types of all-solid-state lithium batteries is the one made with the argyrodite solid electrolyte (ASE). Although substantial efforts have been made toward the commercialization of this battery, it is still [...] Read more.
Due to their safety and high power density, one of the most promising types of all-solid-state lithium batteries is the one made with the argyrodite solid electrolyte (ASE). Although substantial efforts have been made toward the commercialization of this battery, it is still challenged by some technical issues. One of these issues is to prevent the side reactions at the interface of the ASE and the cathode active material (CAM). A solution to address this issue is to coat the CAM particles with a material that is compatible with both ASE and CAM. Prior studies show that the lithium niobate, LiNbO3, (LNO) is a promising material for coating CAM particles to reduce the interfacial side reactions. However, no systematic study is available in the literature to show the effect of coating LNO on CAM performance. This paper aims to quantify the effect of LNO coating on the electrochemical performance of a nickel-rich CAM. The electrochemical performance parameters that are studied are the capacity, cycling performance, and rate performance of the coated-CAM; and the effectiveness of the coating to prevent the side reactions at the ASE and CAM interface is out of the scope of this study. To eliminate the effect of side reactions at the ASE and CAM interface, we conduct all tests in the organic liquid electrolyte (OLE) cells to solely present the effect of coating on the CAM performance. For this purpose, 0.5 wt.% and 1 wt.% LNO are used to coat the LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NMC-60) CAM through two synthesizing methods. Consequently, the effects of the synthesizing method and the coating weight percentage on the NMC-60 performance are presented. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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14 pages, 3383 KiB  
Article
Robotic Disassembly of Electric Vehicles’ Battery Modules for Recycling
by Ian Kay, Siamak Farhad, Ajay Mahajan, Roja Esmaeeli and Sayed Reza Hashemi
Energies 2022, 15(13), 4856; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15134856 - 02 Jul 2022
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 4013
Abstract
Manual disassembly of the lithium-ion battery (LIB) modules of electric vehicles (EVs) for recycling is time-consuming, expensive, and dangerous for technicians or workers. Dangers associated with high voltage and thermal runaway make a robotic system suitable for the automated or semi-automated disassembly of [...] Read more.
Manual disassembly of the lithium-ion battery (LIB) modules of electric vehicles (EVs) for recycling is time-consuming, expensive, and dangerous for technicians or workers. Dangers associated with high voltage and thermal runaway make a robotic system suitable for the automated or semi-automated disassembly of EV batteries. In this paper, we explore battery disassembly using industrial robots. To understand the disassembly process, human workers were monitored, and the operations were analyzed and broken down into gripping and cutting operations. These operations were selected for automation, and path planning was performed offline. For the gripper, a linear quadratic regulator (LQR) control system was implemented. A system identification method was also implemented in the form of a batch least squares estimator to form the state space representation of the planar linkages used in the control strategy of the gripper. A high-speed rotary cut-off wheel was adapted for the robot to perform precise cutting at various points in the battery module case. The simulation results were used to program an industrial robot for experimental validation. The precision of the rotary cutter allowed for a more direct disassembly method as opposed to the standard manual method. It was shown that the robot was almost twice as fast in cutting but slower in pick and place operations. It has been shown that the best option for disassembly of a LIB pack is a human–robot collaboration, where the robot could make efficient cuts on the battery pack and the technician could quickly sort the battery components and remove connectors or fasteners with which the robot would struggle. This collaboration also reduces the danger encountered by the technician because the risk of shorting battery cells while cutting would be eliminated, but the time efficiency would be significantly improved. This paper demonstrates that a robot offers both safety and time improvements to the current manual disassembly process for EV LIBs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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11 pages, 4344 KiB  
Article
Modal Analysis of a Lithium-Ion Battery for Electric Vehicles
by Nicholas Gordon Garafolo, Siamak Farhad, Manindra Varma Koricherla, Shihao Wen and Roja Esmaeeli
Energies 2022, 15(13), 4841; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15134841 - 01 Jul 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2385
Abstract
The battery pack in electric vehicles is subjected to road-induced vibration and this vibration is one of the potential causes of battery pack failure, especially once the road-induced frequency is close to the natural frequency of the battery when resonance occurs in the [...] Read more.
The battery pack in electric vehicles is subjected to road-induced vibration and this vibration is one of the potential causes of battery pack failure, especially once the road-induced frequency is close to the natural frequency of the battery when resonance occurs in the cells. If resonance occurs, it may cause notable structural damage and deformation of cells in the battery pack. In this study, the natural frequencies and mode shapes of a commercial pouch lithium-ion battery (LIB) are investigated experimentally using a laser scanning vibrometer, and the effects of the battery supporting methods in the battery pack are presented. For this purpose, a test setup to hold the LIB on the shaker is designed. A numerical analysis using COMSOL Multiphysics software is performed to confirm that the natural frequency of the designed test setup is much higher than that of the battery cell. The experimental results show that the first natural frequency in the two-side supported and three-side supported battery is about 310 Hz and 470 Hz, respectively. Although these frequencies are more than the road-induced vibration frequencies, it is recommended that the pouch LIBs are supported from three sides in battery packs. The voltage of the LIB is also monitored during all experiments. It is observed that the battery voltage is not affected by applying mechanical vibration to the battery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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26 pages, 15184 KiB  
Article
Design of a Non-Linear Observer for SOC of Lithium-Ion Battery Based on Neural Network
by Ning Chen, Xu Zhao, Jiayao Chen, Xiaodong Xu, Peng Zhang and Weihua Gui
Energies 2022, 15(10), 3835; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15103835 - 23 May 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1626
Abstract
This paper presents a method for use in estimating the state of charge (SOC) of lithium-ion batteries which is based on an electrochemical impedance equivalent circuit model with a controlled source. Considering that the open-circuit voltage of a battery varies with the SOC, [...] Read more.
This paper presents a method for use in estimating the state of charge (SOC) of lithium-ion batteries which is based on an electrochemical impedance equivalent circuit model with a controlled source. Considering that the open-circuit voltage of a battery varies with the SOC, an equivalent circuit model with a controlled source is proposed which the voltage source and current source interact with each other. On this basis, the radial basis function (RBF) neural network is adopted to estimate the uncertainty in the battery model online, and a non-linear observer based on the radial basis function of the RBF neural network is designed to estimate the SOC of batteries. It is proved that the SOC estimation error is ultimately bounded by Lyapunov stability analysis, and the error bound can be arbitrarily small. The high accuracy and validity of the non-linear observer based on the RBF neural network in SOC estimation are verified with experimental simulation results. The SOC estimation results of the extended Kalman filter (EKF) are compared with the proposed method. It improves convergence speed and accuracy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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16 pages, 13629 KiB  
Article
Performance of Cathodes Fabricated from Mixture of Active Materials Obtained from Recycled Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Hammad Al-Shammari and Siamak Farhad
Energies 2022, 15(2), 410; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15020410 - 06 Jan 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2462
Abstract
The cathode performance of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) fabricated from recycled cathode active materials is studied for three scenarios. These scenarios are based on the conditions for separation of different cathode active materials in recycling facilities during the LIB’s recycling process. In scenario one, [...] Read more.
The cathode performance of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) fabricated from recycled cathode active materials is studied for three scenarios. These scenarios are based on the conditions for separation of different cathode active materials in recycling facilities during the LIB’s recycling process. In scenario one, the separation process is performed ideally, and the obtained pure single cathode active material is used to make new LIBs after regeneration. In scenario two, the separation of active materials is performed with efficiencies of less than 100%, which is the actual case in the recycling process. In this scenario, a single cathode active material that contains a little of the other types of cathode active materials is used to make new LIBs after the materials’ regeneration. In scenario three, the separation has not been performed during the recycling process. In this scenario, all types of cathode active materials are regenerated together, and a mixture is used to make new LIBs. The studies are performed through modeling and computer simulation, and several experiments are conducted for validation purposes. The cathode active materials that are studied are the five commercially available cathodes made of LiMn2O4 (LMO), LiCoO2 (LCO), LiNixMnyCo(1−x−y)O2 (NMC), LiNixCoyAl(1−x−y)O2 (NCA), and LiFePO4 (LFP). The results indicate that the fabrication of new LIBs with a mixture of cathode active materials is possible when cathode active materials are not ideally separated from each other. However, it is recommended that the separation process is added to the recycling process, at least for the separation of LFP or reducing its amount in the cathode active materials mixture. This is because of the difference of the voltage level of LFP compared to the other studied active materials for cathodes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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Review

Jump to: Research

21 pages, 7827 KiB  
Review
A Review on the Molecular Modeling of Argyrodite Electrolytes for All-Solid-State Lithium Batteries
by Oluwasegun M. Ayoola, Alper Buldum, Siamak Farhad and Sammy A. Ojo
Energies 2022, 15(19), 7288; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15197288 - 04 Oct 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2117
Abstract
Solid-state argyrodite electrolytes are promising candidate materials to produce safe all-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLBs) due to their high ionic conductivity. These batteries can be used to power electric vehicles and portable consumer electronics which need high power density. Atomic-scale modeling with ab initio [...] Read more.
Solid-state argyrodite electrolytes are promising candidate materials to produce safe all-solid-state lithium batteries (ASSLBs) due to their high ionic conductivity. These batteries can be used to power electric vehicles and portable consumer electronics which need high power density. Atomic-scale modeling with ab initio calculations became an invaluable tool to better understand the intrinsic properties and stability of these materials. It is also used to create new structures to tailor their properties. This review article presents some of the recent theoretical investigations based on atomic-scale modeling to study argyrodite electrolytes for ASSLBs. A comparison of the effectiveness of argyrodite materials used for ASSLBs and the underlying advantages and disadvantages of the argyrodite materials are also presented in this article. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lithium-Ion Batteries: Latest Advances, Challenges and Prospects)
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