Sharif Digital Repository

In this work, cycling-induced aging occurring in 18650-type LiFePO4/graphite full cells at different C-rates is studied extensively. The mechanism of performance degradation is investigated using a combination of electrochemical and microstructural analyses. Half-cell studies are carried out after dismantling the full cells, using fresh and cycled LiFePO4 cathode and graphite anode to independently study them. The results show that the capacity of LiFePO4 electrodes is significantly recovered. The rate of capacity fading in the discharge state considered as irreversible capacity in the graphite is higher than LiFePO4 half cells, indicating a greater degradation in the performance of this... 

This paper presents a mathematical formulation of lithium-ion batteries, including aging and temperature effects. The model is developed by integrating the simplified single particle model (SSPM) and reduced-order model (ROM) to predict solid electrolyte interphase growth (SEI). Results show agreement with the experimental data at 25 °C operating temperature and moderate cycling currents. A maximum error of 3.6% in finding the battery discharged Ah is observed in harsh operating conditions, including 60 °C and approaching the end of life of the battery. Due to the typical operating conditions of stand-alone renewable energy systems, more accurate estimations are expected. Finally, this... 

Titanium nitride/graphene nanocomposite as an anode material of lithium ion batteries has been fabricated through the reaction of TiCl4 and NaN3 in supercritical benzene medium followed by ammonia treating at 1000 °C for 10 h. The synthesized TiN/G nanocomposite depicts rate-dependent behavior in such a way that it shows specific capacity of 115 mAh g−1 when is cycled at higher rate (1.6 C) while it shows 76 mAh g−1 when is cycled initially at lower rate (0.2 C) and is subsequently subjected to higher rate (1.6 C). Moreover, TiN/G anode demonstrates capacity retention of 112%, 100%, and 70% after 250 cycles at charge/discharge rates of 1.6, 0.7, and 0.2 C, respectively. This unusual behavior... 

In Li-ion batteries the interface between the nano-size spherical core graphite and its surrounding solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer, just inside SEI is susceptible to damage. Thus, accurate determination of the associated elastic fields is one of the challenges in optimizing the lifetime and capacity of Li-ion batteries. The required precision is achieved by considering the core graphite which belongs to the crystal class D6h as homogeneous spherically isotropic and SEI layer as functionally graded (FG) isotropic material. Moreover, to account for the surface/interface effects appropriately the core-shell nano-structure subjected to the diffusion-induced time-dependent nonuniform... 

SnO2 is considered as one of the high specific capacity anode materials for Lithium-ion batteries. However, the low electrical conductivity of SnO2 limits its applications. This manuscript reports a simple and efficient approach for the synthesis of Sb-doped SnO2 nanowires (NWs) core and carbon shell structure which effectively enhances the electrical conductivity and electrochemical performance of SnO2 nanostructures. Sb doping was performed during the vapor-liquid-solid synthesis of SnO2 NWs in a horizontal furnace. Subsequently, carbon nanolayer was coated on the NWs using the DC Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition approach. The carbon-coated shell improves the Solid-Electrolyte... 

A simple gelating process is developed for the conventional acetonitrile-based electrolyte of dye solar cells, based on ethyl cellulose as the gelator. The electrolyte becomes quasi-solid-state upon addition of an ethanolic solution of ethyl cellulose to the conventional acetonitrile-based liquid electrolyte. The photovoltaic conversion efficiency with the new gel electrolyte is only slightly lower than with the liquid electrolyte, e.g., 6.5 % for liquid electrolyte versus 5.9 % for gel electrolyte with 5.8 wt% added ethyl cellulose. Electrolyte gelation has small effect on the ionic diffusion coefficient of iodide, and the devices are remarkably stable for at least 550 h under irradiation... 

We report improved performance of Li-ion polymer batteries through advanced gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs). Compared to solid and liquid electrolytes, GPEs are advantageous as they can be fabricated in different shapes and geometries; also ionic properties are significantly superior to that of solid and liquid electrolytes. We have synthetized GPE in form of membranes by trapping ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate in a composite of polyvinylidene fluoride and N-methylpyrrolidinore. By applying phase-transfer method, we synthetized membranes with micro-pores, which led to higher ionic conductivity. The proposed membrane is to be modified further to have higher capacity, stronger... 

The main objective of this work is minimizing the cost of electricity of solid oxide fuel cell stacks by decelerating degradation mechanisms rate in long term operation for stationary power generation applications. The degradation mechanisms in solid oxide fuel cells are caused by microstructural changes, reactions between lanthanum strontium manganite and electrolyte, poisoning by chromium, carburization on nickel particles, formation of nickel sulfide, nickel coarsening, nickel oxidation, loss of conductivity and crack formation in the electrolyte. The rate of degradation mechanisms depends on the cell operating conditions (cell voltage and fuel utilization). In this study, the degradation... 

Effective diffusion coefficient is an important parameter which needs to be determined in different fields of study, such as cathode catalyst layers of PEM fuel. For this purpose, a Loschmidt diffusion cell can be used. When a porous medium is placed in Loschmidt apparatus, the effective gas diffusion coefficient (EGDC) of this section must be correlated by diffusion coefficient in absence of a porous medium. In the previous researches studying the Loschmidt diffusion cell, a simplifying infinite-length assumption was used in the analytical solution. Therefore, the solution is only applicable for a short time range, and this can result in high error. In order to overcome this challenge, the... 

In this research, it is investigated to numerically evaluate the performance of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The performance is investigated through the nonuniformity gradient loading at the catalyst layer (CL) of the considered PEMFC. Computational fluid dynamics is used to simulate a 2D domain in which a steady-state laminar compressible flow in two-phase for the PEMFC has been considered. In this case, a particular nonuniform variation inside the CL along the channel is assumed. The nonuniform gradient is created using a nonisothermal domain to predict the flooding effects on the performance of the PEMFC. The computational domain is considered as the cathode of PEMFC,... 

Cubic phase Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZO) is a promising solid electrolyte for next-generation Li-ion batteries. In this work, the combustion sol–gel technique is used to prepare an Al-doped LLZO solid electrolyte. The crystal structure is investigated, and the cubic phase is confirmed. Densification properties were investigated using SEM and optical dilatometry. The densification of the Al-doped sample takes place in two stages through two different shrinkage rates. Using 0.25 mol Al-dopant 94% relative density is achieved at 1100 °C. The effect of Al-doping on electrochemical properties is investigated in detail using AC impedance spectroscopy. The result indicates that the optimum concentration of...