Process of making negative electrode and rechargeable lithium battery using the same

Abstract

A process of electroless plating a tin or tin-alloy active material onto a metal substrate for the negative electrode of a rechargeable lithium battery comprising steps of (1) immersing the metal substrate in an aqueous plating solution containing metal ions to be plated, (2) plating tin or tin-alloy active material onto the metal substrate by contacting the metal substrate with a reducing metal by swiping one on the other, and (3) removing the plated metal substrate from the plating bath and rinsing with deionized water. A rechargeable lithium battery using tin or tin-alloy as the anode active material.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A process of making a negative electrode for a rechargeable lithium battery by plating an active material on a metal substrate comprising the steps of
 immersing a metal substrate in a plating bath;   plating an anode active material on a metal substrate by swiping a reducing metal on a metal substrate; and   rinsing the plated metal substrate and drying it.   
     
     
         2 . A negative electrode made according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         3 . The negative electrode of  claim 2 , wherein the anode active material has a general formula of Sn 1-x-y M′ x M″ y  (0≦x≦0.50 and 0≦y≦0.20, with a relation of the sum of x and y not to be more than 0.50); M′ and M″ are independent and selected from the group consisting of Ge, Pb, Sb, Bi, Ti, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Ag. 
     
     
         4 . The negative electrode of  claim 2 , wherein the plating bath is an aqueous acidic solution of sulfate, hydrochloride, and nitrate of bivalent tin, M′, and M″, the total concentration of the metal ions is from 0.01 M to 0.5 M, and the pH of the solution is from 0.5 to 2. 
     
     
         5 . The negative electrode of  claim 2 , wherein the reducing metal is selected from the group consisting of Mg, Al, Mn, Zn, Cr and Fe. 
     
     
         6 . A rechargeable lithium battery comprising the negative electrode made according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         7 . The rechargeable lithium battery of  claim 6 , wherein the anode active material has a general formula of Sn 1-x-y M′ x M″ y  (0≦x≦0.50 and 0≦y≦0.20, with a relation of the sum of x and y not to be more than 0.50); M′ and M″ are independent and selected from the group consisting of Ge, Pb, Sb, Bi, Ti, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Ag. 
     
     
         8 . The rechargeable lithium battery of  claim 6 , wherein the plating bath is an aqueous acidic solution of sulfate, hydrochloride, and nitrate of bivalent tin, M′, and M″, the total concentration of the metal ions is from 0.01 M to 0.5 M, and the pH of the solution is from 0.5 to 2. 
     
     
         9 . The rechargeable lithium battery of  claim 6 , wherein the reducing metal is selected from the group consisting of Mg, Al, Mn, Zn, Cr and Fe.