QuBAT

Batteries are one of the most promising storage technologies playing an essential role in meeting the EU goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030. Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) dominate the market but their low-capacity graphite anode cannot meet the ever-growing energy demand. Thankfully, high theoretical capacity and sustainable silicon-based materials are envisioned in science nowadays as promising alternatives for graphite anode. However, volume expansion typically takes place during the cycling process. This results in premature cell failure hindering the development of higher-performant and more sustainable LIBs.

Therefore, in QuBAT we aim to understand the volume expansion and its resulting degradation mechanisms (nanoscale cracks and intermediate phase formation) in battery materials under high ionic flux during the charging/discharging process by employing a unique approach named correlative microscopy. The key idea is to quantify these volumetric changes and to employ the knowledge gained in synthesizing more robust anode materials to these mechanical degradations. These fundamental understandings will not only produce groundbreaking research in science but will also be utilized for other Li-free battery systems, such as sodium-ion batteries.