Novel Chelating Solvent for Non-Aqueous Rechargeable Cells

摘要

It was proposed that a particular chelating ether could be uniquely useful in ether-based Li secondary cells. This ether would be an alternative to dimethoxyethane (DME) which has found limited usefulness in secondary cells. This new ether was obtained through synthesis and purified to a high level of purity. The addition of the ether to 2-MeTHF/LiAsF6 electrolytes gave significant increase in conductivity with minimal loss in Li cycling efficiency. DME was also found to perform surprisingly well in the analogous tests though not as well as the new chelating ether. A problem with DME is that it readily forms insoluble solvates. On the other hand, relatively small amounts of DME give great enhancement in conductivity. It is concluded that both ethers offer the possibility of improved electrolytes for Li secondary cells and deserve further investigation.