An immobilized chalcogen system or body includes a mixture or combination of chalcogen and carbon. The carbon can be in the form of a carbon skeleton. The chalcogen can include oxygen, sulfur, selenium, or tellurium, or a combination of any two or more of oxygen, sulfur, selenium, and tellurium. The activation energy for chalcogen to escape the immobilized chalcogen system or body is 96 kJ/mole.

Nanoporous carbon-based scaffolds or structures, and specifically carbon aerogels and their manufacture and use thereof. Embodiments include a sulfur-doped cathode material within a lithium-sulfur battery, where the cathode is collector-less and is formed of a binder-free, monolithic, polyimide-derived carbon aerogel. The carbon aerogel includes pores that surround elemental sulfur and accommodate expansion of the sulfur during conversion to lithium sulfide. The cathode and underlying carbon aerogel provide optimal properties for use within the lithium-sulfur battery.

A manufacturing method of an electrode assembly capable of easily manufacturing a configuration in which an electrolyte and an active material are bonded to each other is provided. A step of supplying, solidifying, and crystallizing a solid electrolyte 22 including Li.sub.2+XC.sub.1XB.sub.XO.sub.3 (X represents a real number equal to or greater than 0 and smaller than 1), so as to be in contact with an active material aggregate 12 including a communication hole 14 between active material particles 13, is included. In a case where the solid electrolyte 22 is melted, the solid electrolyte 22 is heated in a range of 650 degrees to 900 degrees.

The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a separating membrane in gel form, for an alkali metal ion battery, the method consisting of extruding a mix comprising: an alkali metal salt, a dinitrile compound with formula NCRCN, in which R is a hydrocarbon group C.sub.nH.sub.2n, and n is equal to 1 or 2 and preferably equal to 2, a hot melt support polymer, soluble in the dinitrile compound.

A method for pre-lithiation of a negative electrode and a negative electrode formed by the method, the method including forming a mixture of inorganic material powder and molten lithium, forming a lithium metal-inorganic material composite ribbon, rolling the ribbon into a film and bonding the lithium metal-inorganic material composite film on a surface of a negative electrode to form a lithium metal-inorganic material composite layer on the surface of the negative electrode. This method reduces the deterioration of lithium during application of a mixture slurry and a negative electrode for a secondary battery, manufactured by the method for pre-lithiation, has improved initial irreversibility, and a secondary battery manufactured using such a negative electrode has excellent charging and discharging efficiency.

Disclosed is a carbon nanoparticle-porous skeleton composite material, its composite with lithium metal, and their preparation methods and use. In the carbon nanoparticle-porous skeleton composite material, the porous skeleton is a carbon-based porous microsphere material with a diameter of 1 to 100 m or a porous metal material having internal pores with a micrometer-scale pore size distribution, and the carbon nanoparticles are distributed in the pores and on the surface of the carbon-based porous microsphere material or the porous metal material. The carbon nanoparticle-porous skeleton composite material is mixed with a molten lithium metal to form a lithium-carbon nanoparticle-porous skeleton composite material. The carbon nanoparticles present in the material can better conduct lithium ions during the battery cycle, thereby inhibiting the formation of lithium dendrites, and improving the safety and cycle stability of the battery.

A secondary particle-type electrode active material including: at least one pore; and a shell surrounding the at least one pore, wherein the shell includes a first layer and a second layer, the first layer including a first carbonaceous material, and the second layer including a composite and disposed on the first layer, wherein the composite includes a silicon material and a second carbonaceous material. Also, an electrode and a secondary battery include the electrode active material.

The present invention relates to a method for producing a substrate (2) which is coated with an alkali metal (1), in which method a promoter layer (3) which is composed of a material which reacts with the alkali metal (1) by at least partial chemical reduction of the promoter layer (3) is applied to a surface of the substrate (2) and a surface of the promoter layer (3) is acted on by an alkali metal (1) and then the alkali metal (1) is converted into the solid phase and a coating containing the alkali metal is formed.

An electrochemical cell comprising a lithium metal negative electrode layer physically and chemically bonded to a surface of a negative electrode current collector via an intermediate metal chalcogenide layer. The intermediate metal chalcogenide layer may comprise a metal oxide, a metal sulfide, a metal selenide, or a combination thereof. The intermediate metal chalcogenide layer may be formed on the surface of the negative electrode current collector by exposing the surface to a chalcogen in gas phase. Then, the lithium metal negative electrode layer may be formed on the surface of the negative electrode current collector over the intermediate metal chalcogenide layer by contacting at least a portion of the metal chalcogenide layer with a source of lithium such that the lithium actively wets the metal chalcogenide layer and forms a conformal lithium metal layer on the surface of the negative electrode current collector over the metal chalcogenide layer.

The present invention relates to an electrode for a secondary battery, comprising an electrode current collector and a lithium metal layer disposed on one surface of the electrode current collector, wherein a thickness difference between the thinnest portion and the thickest portion of the lithium metal layer is 1,000 pm or less, and a method of manufacturing the same.