How Damage Spreads through a Battery Particle (IMAGE)
Caption
A simulation based on X-ray experiments at SLAC shows what happens to a single battery electrode particle when it is charged over the course of 12 minutes. The particle swells and shrinks as lithium ions enter and leave, causing the particle to crack (black lines). Then electrolyte seeps into those cracks and damages the interior, reducing the volume where lithium ions can be stored (reddish area) and thus the particle's ability to store energy. The study found that interactions between the particle's surface and interior are important for understanding these damage patterns.
Credit
S. Li et al., Nature Communications, 2020
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