Commercialization of solid‐state batteries requires the upscaling of the material syntheses as well as the mixing of electrode composites containing the solid electrolyte, cathode active materials, binders, and conductive additives. Inspired by recent literature about the tremendous influence of the employed milling and dispersing procedure on the resulting ionic transport properties of solid ionic conductors and the general performance of all solid‐state batteries, in this review, the underlying physical and mechanochemical processes that influence this processing are discussed. By discussing and combining the theoretical backgrounds of mechanical milling with regard to mechanochemical synthesis and dispersing of particles together with a wide range of examples, a better understanding of the critical parameters attached to mechanical milling of solid electrolytes and solid‐state battery components is provided.
Solid-state batteries possess the potential to combine increased energy densities, high voltages, as well as safe operation and therefore are considered the future technology for electrical energy storage. In particular, sulfides as solid electrolyte are promising candidates due to their high ionic conductivities and the possibility of a scalable production. This review aims to demonstrate ways to manufacture suspension-based sulfidic solid-state batteries both on a laboratory scale and on an industrial level, focusing on the assessment of current knowl-edge and its discussion from a process engineering point of view. In addition to the influence of process parameters during mechanochemical synthesis of the solid electrolyte, formulation strategies for electrodes and separators are presented. The process chain from dispersion to cell assembly is evaluated. Scale-up technologies are considered in comparison to established techniques in the field of conventional lithium-ion batteries with liquid electrolyte summarizing the current status of sulfidic solid-state battery production.
The global use of lithium-ion batteries of all types has been increasing at a rapid pace for many years. In order to achieve the goal of an economical and sustainable battery industry, the recycling and recirculation of materials is a central element on this path. As the achievement of high 95% recovery rates demanded by the European Union for some metals from today’s lithium ion batteries is already very challenging, the question arises of how the process chains and safety of battery recycling as well as the achievement of closed material cycles are affected by the new lithium battery generations, which are supposed to enter the market in the next 5 to 10 years. Based on a survey of the potential development of battery technology in the next years, where a diversification between high-performance and cost-efficient batteries is expected, and today’s knowledge on recycling, the challenges and chances of the new battery generations regarding the development of recycling processes, hazards in battery dismantling and recycling, as well as establishing a circular economy are discussed. It becomes clear that the diversification and new developments demand a proper separation of battery types before recycling, for example by a transnational network of dismantling and sorting locations, and flexible and high sophisticated recycling processes with case-wise higher safety standards than today. Moreover, for the low-cost batteries, recycling of the batteries becomes economically unattractive, so legal stipulations become important. However, in general, it must be still secured that closing the material cycle for all battery types with suitable processes is achieved to secure the supply of raw materials and also to further advance new developments.
For the development of all‐solid‐state batteries (ASSBs), it is of major importance to identify scalable process routes, to define limits of the processing technologies, and to investigate how the electrochemical performance can be influenced by the manufacturing process. Herein, two scalable and sustainable production chains are presented, extrusion‐ and direct calendaring of composite cathode granules, which are suitable for industrial series production. Both process routes start with a melt granulation step to desagglomerate the carbon black to homogenize the cathode components. By adjusting the granulation process parameters the process time and, thus, the production costs can be reduced. The polymer solid electrolyte distribution induced by the process shows a considerable influence on the rate capability of the ASSB cells. The manufactured pouch cells reach ≈140 mAh g−1 at 0.1C and 75/50 mAh g−1 at 1C discharge rate and 80 °C for extruded‐calendered and directly calendered electrodes, respectively, which is comparable to other recent publications on laboratory scale.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.