A chelate complex with boron, lithium bis[2,3-naphthalenediolato(2-)-O,O']borate was used in lithium battery electrolytes for LiN 2 O 5 prototype cells. This lithium salt remains a safe and thermally stable compound up to 320°C without melting. A high specific conductivity (4.63 mS cm-1 ) is exhibited in spite of its high viscosity (1.732 cP) in a 0.5 mol dm-3 electrolyte/ethylene carbonate-1,2-dimethoxyethane (mol ratio 2:3) binary solvent mixture at 25°C. Based on the discharge characteristics of a Li/VN 2 O prototype cell, this lithium salt electrolyte resulted in high energy density (460 Wh kg-') at a cutoff potential of 2.5 V vs. Li/Li +.

The solvation numbers of LiCl and LiI, and of KI for comparison, in water–MeOH mixtures and water–i-PrOH mixtures were determined at an infinite dilution at 25 °C from the adiabatic compressibility. The heats of solution of these salts were also determined. In general, with an increase in the concentration of alcohol the solvation number increases initially to reach a maximum at 10–30 mol% alcohol, then it decreases to a minimum and increases again from about 75 mol% alcohol. The maximum solvation numbers of the salts determined are as follows: LiCl 11.2 mol/mol at 30 mol% MeOH; LiCl 11.5 mol/mol at 15 mol% i-PrOH; LiI 8.2 mol/mol at 12 mol% i-PrOH and KI 14.0 mol/mol at 10 mol% i-PrOH. The larger the cation, the larger the solvation number. Also, the composition of the solvant where the salt containing larger ions has a maximum solvation number has a lower concentration of alcohol. The maximum solvation number of LiI containing a larger anion is smaller than that of LiCl because an iodide ion has a much larger structure-breaking effect than a chloride ion. By the way, there seems to be difference in the structure of the mixed solvent before and after the maximum solvation number.