Lecture by Professor Steen Brian Schougaard, Université du Québec à Montréal

Title:Conductive polymer‐LiFePO4 composites ‐ From ʺsoft chemistryʺ to lithium ion battery materials

Abstract:

LiFePO4 is one of the most promising cathode materials for electric vehicle
lithium ion batteries. It is made from inherently cheap, and environmentally
benign starting materials, with the added benefit that it, unlike the most com‐
mon cathode material LiCoO2, is safe under abuse conditions. This material
however has a number of unique features that must addressed before it can
reach its full ”potential” in practical batteries, i.e. the electronic and the ionic
conduction is comparably low. A recognized methodology to overcome this
charge transport problem is to ”down‐size” the particle to the sub‐micron or
nano‐region. However, to maintain particles at this scale requires a conductive
coating reaction that takes place at low temperature. In addition, since the end
target is storage of ”green” energy, the process, i.e. both reactants and prod‐
ucts, should have minimal impact on the environment.
In this talk, we present our newest developments towards a coating reaction
based on ”soft” chemistry methods that fulfill these requirements.