Irreversibility Compensated Metal Oxide Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries--Covalent Associates, Inc., 10 State Street, Woburn, MA 01801-6820; (781) 938-1140
Dr. K. M. Abraham, Principal Investigator
Dr. K. M. Abraham, Business Official
DOE Grant No. DE-FG02-98ER82556
Amount: $75,000

Lithium-ion batteries utilizing metal oxide anodes such as tin oxide would have high specific energies, adequate to meet the long-term goals for electric vehicle batteries. However, the large irreversible capacities of these anodes are a deterrent to their practical applications. This project will address the irreversibility of metal oxides by treating them with appropriate reducing agents, thereby transforming them into composites having the same capacities as the oxides but without the irreversible capacities. The outcome would be a class of novel anode materials for lithium-ion batteries that would have higher capacities and better safety characteristics than the carbon anodes used in commercial lithium-ion batteries. The Phase I project will address: (1) the synthesis and characterization of novel composite anode materials, (2) electrochemical characterization of the composites, and (3) fabrication and testing of lithium-ion cells using the novel anodes.

Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: Lithium-ion batteries resulting from this project would have high enough specific energy to meet the long-term goals for electric vehicle batteries. Other commercial applications include portable electronic equipment such as notebook computers, videocameras, cellular telephones, radios and hand-held tools.