Our scientists have developed the first in Europe and second in the world salt for lithium-ion cells which was implemented in manufacturing on an industrial scale. In 2018, the idea was implemented by the French company Arkema. The first phones and cars that include the results of the Polish research are already available on the market.

Long-lasting and safe electrolyte

– Our salt increases the lifespan of a battery three times and contains four to eight times less fluorine, which facilitates and boosts the recovery of materials during recycling processes – explains Professor Leszek Niedzicki from the Faculty of Chemistry.

This does not end the list of advantages of the solution. It also allows to cut production costs. Firstly because one can obtain the same functional parameters using a smaller amount of salt (three times less compared with the one used before). Secondly, it does not require so sterile (and thus costly) manufacturing conditions.

– On the covers of electronic devices we often see that they cannot be left in the sun or close to heaters – due to limited thermal resistance of batteries – says Professor Niedzicki. – And our invention is resistant to high temperatures. The salt used before is also not compatible with most new electrodes, while our salt works well with them.

The new electrolyte is used in the development of a European battery standard, i.e. the formula according to which factories in the European Union will manufacture batteries for energy storage and vehicles.

– The standard is being developed within a European consortium BIG-MAP, which we have been invited to join as the only unit from East Europe – stresses Professor Władysław Wieczorek, Dean of the Faculty of Chemistry and head of the team working on the batteries.

The Faculty of Chemistry has been working on batteries for years. In the photo, head of the team, Professor Władysław Wieczorek and a doctoral student Klaudia Rogala

New batteries and new materials

Apart from the electrolyte introduced by Arkema, the team from the Faculty of Chemistry also enjoys other successes and is part of international cooperation.

– We develop projects with solid batteries, without liquid constituents – says Professor Niedzicki. – They work very well especially in electric cars. In case of an accident, nothing will leak from such battery, nothing will be ignited so we avoid threats to the passengers of the car or to the environment.

The idea is developed within the European project ASTRABAT. Another European project – DESTINY – concentrates on work on batteries without fluorine or rare-earth metals.

– Thanks to eliminating fluorine, batteries will be safer in production and use, and then easier to recycle and more environmentally-friendly – explains Professor Niedzicki. – Production with the use of abundant metals (e.g., iron), instead of rare metals (cobalt or nickel), will be cheaper. It will also solve the problems of supply and limit the dependence on single suppliers – in case of cobalt it is unstable Congo, and in case of nickel – Russia.

Prof. Leszek Niedzicki deals with battery electrolytes

Researchers from the Faculty of Chemistry have also developed a solution which will enable the use of batteries in extreme situations.

– We have developed a technology of electrolytes thanks to which batteries can work in polar conditions, in high mountains and in space – says Professor Niedzicki. – Typical batteries retain their properties up to -20°C, and below this temperature they lose their capacity or stop working. Batteries developed by Marta Kasprzyk, PhD, from our team, withstand even -80°C.

Recently within the cooperation with the Slovenian National Institute of Chemistry, WUT researchers have been dealing with improvement of the properties of new generation metal-organic cells, using calcium and magnesium instead of lithium. They are planning to use additives to electrolytes, first commercial ones, and then their own and to develop new organic cathode materials. The goal is clear – to increase the efficiency of the battery and to become independent of more and more exploited lithium resources.

– Our team has over 100 publications, which so far have been cited over 6 thousand times, over 30 patents, including 12 foreign ones, many projects, we participate in the most important battery initiatives – lists Professor Wieczorek. – I hope than soon this list will be complemented by a Polish factory producing batteries in sodium-ion technology.

Prof. Władysław Wieczorek, prof. Marek Marcinek and doctoral students who deal with battery technology at the Faculty of Chemistry