Compositions and methods for parallel processing of electrode film mixtures

Abstract

Materials and methods for preparing electrode film mixtures and electrode films including reduced damage bulk active materials are provided. In a first aspect, a method for preparing an electrode film mixture for an energy storage device is provided, comprising providing an initial binder mixture comprising a first binder and a first active material, processing the initial binder mixture under high shear to form a secondary binder mixture, and nondestructively mixing the secondary binder mixture with a second portion of active materials to form an electrode film mixture.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A parallel processing method for preparing an electrode film comprising:
 providing an initial binder mixture comprising a first binder and a first active material;   processing the initial binder mixture under high shear to form a secondary binder mixture;   forming an electrode film mixture by mixing the secondary binder mixture with a second active material by a first nondestructive mixing process; and   forming an electrode film from the electrode film mixture, wherein the electrode film is a free-standing film.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein mixing the secondary binder mixture with the second active material by the first nondestructive mixing process comprises mixing at least one of a lower pressure, lower velocity, and faster feed rate than the processing under high shear step. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first binder and the first active material are mixed by a second nondestructive mixing process to form the initial binder mixture prior to providing the initial binder mixture. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein at least one of the first and the second nondestructive mixing processes is an acoustic mixing process. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein mixing comprises mixing the binder mixture with an active material mixture, the active material mixture comprising the second active material. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the active material mixture further comprises a second binder. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the mass ratio of the first active material to the first binder is between about 1:1 to about 4:1 by weight. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the second active material comprises a treated surface. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the second active material within the electrode film comprises active material particle surfaces that are pristine. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the combined D 50  particle size distribution of a total active material, including the first and second active materials, in the electrode film mixture is at least about 6 μm. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electrode film mixture is not exposed to a high shear process before being formed into the electrode film. 
     
     
         12 . An electrode film for an energy storage device comprising:
 an active material comprising active material particles, wherein the D 50  size distribution of a total of the active material particles is at least about 6 μm; and   a binder;
 wherein the electrode film is a free-standing film. 
   
     
     
         13 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the electrode film has a tensile strength of greater than about 0.25 MPa. 
     
     
         14 . The electrode film of  claim 13 , wherein the electrode film has a tensile strength of about 0.3 MPa to about 0.7 MPa. 
     
     
         15 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the electrode film comprises a total binder loading of about 1.5% to about 4% by mass. 
     
     
         16 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the active material comprises an anode active material. 
     
     
         17 . The electrode film of  claim 16 , wherein the anode active material comprises graphite. 
     
     
         18 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the active material comprises sulfur or a material including sulfur. 
     
     
         19 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the electrode film is substantially free of solvent residue. 
     
     
         20 . The electrode film of  claim 12 , wherein the second active material within the electrode film comprises active material particle surfaces that are pristine. 
     
     
         21 . An energy storage device comprising:
 an anode comprising an electrode film, wherein the electrode film comprises an active material comprising graphite, and a binder comprising PTFE;   a cathode;   a separator; and   an electrolyte;
 wherein the energy storage device has a first cycle efficiency of greater than about 85%. 
   
     
     
         22 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the energy storage device has a first cycle efficiency of at least about 90%. 
     
     
         23 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the energy storage device is a battery. 
     
     
         24 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the electrode film comprises a total binder loading of about 1.5% to about 4% by mass. 
     
     
         25 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the cathode comprises sulfur or a material including sulfur. 
     
     
         26 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the electrode film is substantially free of solvent residue. 
     
     
         27 . The energy storage device of  claim 21 , wherein the active material within the electrode film comprises active material particle surfaces that are pristine. 
     
     
         28 . The energy storage device of  claim 27 , wherein the combined D 50  particle size distribution of a total of the active material is at least about 6 μm.