An apparatus and method for battery temperature control, the apparatus including a cooling plate, a first transporter selectively moving the cooling plate along a first axis, and a controller operably coupled to the first transporter and selectively outputting a control signal to the first transporter for commanding the first transporter to move the cooling plate to a first location or a second location. The cooling plate comes into contact with an outer surface of the battery by a preset maximum area at the first location, and the cooling plate comes into contact with the outer surface by an area smaller than the maximum area or is separated from the outer surface at the second location.

A battery monitoring device includes a controller connected to terminals of a battery for monitoring the charging of the battery. A flow sensor is connected to a watering conduit to monitor a watering condition of the battery. A probe may be provided in communication with the electrolyte within each cell of the battery for monitoring electrolyte levels. A fan is operated by the controller if a temperature sensor senses the temperature of the battery is above a prescribed temperature threshold or if the voltage monitored across the terminals is indicative of completion of a charging cycle of the battery. An indicator coupled to the controller serves to indicate when watering of the battery is needed according to watering criteria, or to indicate when a watering of the battery has been completed.

The present disclosure pertains to motion-generating pumps, energy storage devices including such motion-generating pumps, and methods of making and using the same for the desulfation of lead-acid batteries. The energy storage device includes a battery casing defining a plurality of chambers, each of the plurality of chambers may include one or more electroactive plates disposed therein and an electrolyte disposed so as to surround the one or more electroactive plates. The energy storage device further includes one or more circulating systems configured to agitate the electrolyte in each of the plurality of chambers. A method for desulfation in a lead-acid battery may include using one or more circulating systems to circulate an electrolyte so as to prevent precipitation.

The present disclosure pertains to motion-generating mechanisms for desulfation of lead-acid batteries, lead-acid batteries including such motion-generating mechanisms, and methods of making and using the same. For example, the present disclosure provides a lead-acid battery that includes one or more electroactive plates disposed within a casing; an electrolyte disposed within the casing and surrounding the electroactive plates; and one or more movable members disposed on or adjacent to one or more interior surfaces of the casing and in communication with the electrolyte. The one or more movable members each have a first position and a second position and movement between the first position and the second position agitates the electrolyte.

Methods of forming an electrochemical cell using a non-inert gas are disclosed. Exemplary methods include providing a first gas before applying or more of current and voltage to the cell. The first (e.g., non-inert) gas can facilitate formation of a solid electrolyte interphase (SET). Further examples of the disclosure relate to methods of forming an electrochemical cell or portion thereof by electrospraying a solution including polymeric material. Such methods potentially eliminate a step of compressing the cell at a pressure beyond 100 MPa and prolong the cycle life while preventing a fire hazard.

A freestanding laminate includes a separator and an anode layer. The anode layer includes an electrically conductive carbon active material including particular amounts of an activated carbon; a binder; and an electrically conductive filler. The anode layer is in direct physical contact with a first side of the separator. The freestanding laminate is particularly useful for use in various energy storage devices.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel organic sulfur material which is capable of improving a charge/discharge capacity and cycle characteristics, an electrode comprising the organic sulfur material, that is, a positive electrode or a negative electrode, and a lithium-ion secondary battery comprising the electrode. Provided is an organic sulfur material comprising a sulfur-modified acrylic resin, wherein an acrylic resin has peaks around 756 cm.sup.−1, around 1066 cm.sup.−1, around 1150 cm.sup.−1, around 1245 cm.sup.−1, around 1270 cm.sup.−1, around 1453 cm.sup.−1, and around 1732 cm.sup.−1 in an FT-IR spectrum.

Provided is an alkali metal-sulfur battery, comprising: (a) an anode; (b) a cathode having (i) a cathode active material slurry comprising a cathode active material dispersed in an electrolyte and (ii) a conductive porous structure acting as a 3D cathode current collector having at least 70% by volume of pores and wherein cathode active material slurry is disposed in pores of the conductive porous structure, wherein the cathode active material is selected from sulfur, lithium polysulfide, sodium polysulfide, sulfur-polymer composite, sulfur-carbon composite, sulfur-graphene composite, or a combination thereof; and (c) a separator disposed between the anode and the cathode; wherein the cathode thickness-to-cathode current collector thickness ratio is from 0.8/1 to 1/0.8, and/or the cathode active material constitutes an electrode active material loading greater than 15 mg/cm.sup.2, and the 3D porous cathode current collector has a thickness no less than 200 μm (preferably thicker than 500 μm).

Disclosed is a lithium metal secondary battery which includes: an electrode assembly including a negative electrode, a positive electrode and a separator interposed between the negative electrode and the positive electrode; a non-aqueous electrolyte with which the electrode assembly is impregnated; and a battery casing in which the electrode assembly and the non-aqueous electrolyte are received, wherein the negative electrode includes a negative electrode current collector and a lithium metal layer formed on at least one surface of the negative electrode current collector, the charge/discharge condition of the lithium metal secondary battery includes charging the lithium metal secondary battery under a pressurized state and discharging the lithium metal secondary battery under a non-pressurized or pressurized state, and when the lithium secondary battery is discharged under a pressurized state, the pressure applied during discharge is controlled to be smaller than the pressure applied during charge. A battery module including the lithium metal secondary battery is also disclosed.

There is provided a secondary battery cell transfer apparatus for a process of folding a secondary battery cell, including: multiple stations disposed at an equal interval and sequentially disposed in a straight process direction; tables provided in the multiple stations, respectively, and configured to vacuum-grip and support the secondary battery cell from below the secondary battery cell; transfer bars provided in the multiple stations, respectively; vacuum gripping units provided in the table and the transfer bar, respectively, and configured to selectively apply vacuum gripping force to the secondary battery cell; a lifting unit configured to operate a lifting operation of the transfer bar; and a straight transfer drive unit configured to operate a straight reciprocating motion of the transfer bar, in which productivity may be improved by reducing the tact time for a folding process.