This invention relates to particulate electroactive materials consisting of a plurality of composite particles, wherein the composite particles comprise a plurality of silicon nanoparticles dispersed within a conductive carbon matrix. The particulate material comprises 40 to 65 wt % silicon, at least 6 wt % and less than 20% oxygen, and has a weight ratio of the total amount of oxygen and nitrogen to silicon in the range of from 0.1 to 0.45 and a weight ratio of carbon to silicon in the range of from 0.1 to 1. The particulate electroactive materials are useful as an active component of an anode in a metal ion battery.

A method of fabricating and using a zinc negative electrode and systems thereof are described. A zinc electroplated electrode including a layer of zinc metal bonded to a surface of an electrically conductive current collector is fabricated by an electroplating process using a zinc electroplating system. The zinc electroplating system includes: a zinc metal anode, a cathode including the current collector for plating zinc thereon, and an electrolyte bath comprising zinc ions. The electroplating process bonds the zinc metal to the surface of the current collector to create the electroplated zinc electrode. The electroplated zinc electrode is used as a negative electrode in a zinc metal cell. The zinc metal cell may be a primary cell or a secondary cell.

A method of fabricating and using a zinc negative electrode and systems thereof are described. A zinc electroplated electrode including a layer of zinc metal bonded to a surface of an electrically conductive current collector is fabricated by an electroplating process using a zinc electroplating system. The zinc electroplating system includes: a zinc metal anode, a cathode including the current collector for plating zinc thereon, and an electrolyte bath comprising zinc ions. The electroplating process bonds the zinc metal to the surface of the current collector to create the electroplated zinc electrode. The electroplated zinc electrode is used as a negative electrode in a zinc metal cell. The zinc metal cell may be a primary cell or a secondary cell.

A lithium-ion cell includes a ribbon-shaped electrode-separator assembly having an anode, a separator, and a cathode in a sequence anode/separator/cathode. The anode has a ribbon-shaped anode current collector having a first longitudinal edge, a second longitudinal edge, and two ends, wherein the anode current collector has a strip-shaped main region loaded with a layer of negative electrode material and a free edge strip extending along the first longitudinal edge that is not loaded with the electrode material. The cathode has a ribbon-shaped cathode current collector, wherein the cathode current collector has a strip-shaped main region loaded with a layer of positive electrode material and a free edge strip extending along the first longitudinal edge that is not loaded with the electrode material. The negative electrode material containing the at least one active material in a range of from 20 wt % to 90 wt %.

Implementations described herein generally relate to metal electrodes, more specifically lithium-containing anodes, high performance electrochemical devices, such as secondary batteries, including the aforementioned lithium-containing electrodes, and methods for fabricating the same. In one implementation, an anode electrode structure is provided. The anode electrode structure comprises a current collector comprising copper. The anode electrode structure further comprises a lithium metal film formed on the current collector. The anode electrode structure further comprises a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film stack formed on the lithium metal film. The SEI film stack comprises a chalcogenide film formed on the lithium metal film. In one implementation, the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium oxide film formed on the chalcogenide film. In one implementation, the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium carbonate film formed on the lithium oxide film.

A method for processing a negative electrode plate, a sodium-metal negative electrode plate and related devices. In a vacuum environment, the metal vapor reacts with oxygen, and the metal oxide formed by the reaction is plated on the surface of the sodium-metal negative electrode plate to form a metal oxide protective layer with high mechanical strength and stable chemical properties. The metal oxide protective layer can greatly reduce the phenomenon of low yield and performance deterioration caused by the reaction of sodium metal with air and water during the processing of the sodium-metal negative electrode plate. Since the metal oxide has a nanoscale thickness, it can form a corresponding sodium salt with sodium metal under electrochemical conditions, thereby improving the sodium ion transport rate on the surface of the sodium-metal negative electrode plate and improving the battery’s kinetic performance.

An electrochemical cell comprises an anode, a cathode and an electrolyte composition, wherein the anode comprises as anode active material a combination of at least a carbon material and a silicon material; and the electrolyte composition comprises a solvent, from 0.5 wt. % to 70 wt. %, based on the total weight of the electrolyte, of a fluorinated acyclic carboxylic acid ester compound, from 0.5 wt. % 10 wt. %, based on the total weight of the electrolyte, of a fluorinated cyclic carbonate compound; and an electrolyte salt.

An object of the present invention is to provide carbon-coated Si—C composite particles capable of maintaining a high Si utilization rate and suppressing deterioration of initial coulombic efficiency due to oxidation over time of a lithium-ion secondary battery.

The carbon-coated Si—C composite particles of the present invention includes Si—C composite particles containing a carbon material and silicon; and a carbonaceous layer present on surfaces of the Si—C composite particles, wherein the carbon coverage thereof is 70% or more, wherein the BET specific surface area is 200 m.sup.2/g or less; wherein R value (I.sub.D/I.sub.G) is 0.30 or more and 1.10 or less and I.sub.Si/I.sub.G is 0.15 or less, when the peak attributed to Si is present at 450 to 495 cm.sup.−1 and the intensity of the peak is defined as I.sub.Si, in Raman spectrum of the carbon-coated Si—C composite particles: and wherein the full width at half maximum of the peak of a 111 plane of Si is 3.00 deg. or more, and (peak intensity of a 111 plane of SiC)/(peak intensity of the 111 plane of Si) is 0.01 or less, in the XRD pattern measured by powder XRD using a Cu-Kα ray of the carbon-coated Si—C composite particles.

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a silicon-based carbon composite, a preparation method therefor, and an anode active material for a lithium secondary battery, comprising same, and, more specifically, the silicon-based carbon composite of the present invention is a silicon-based carbon composite having a core-shell structure, wherein the core comprises silicon, silicon oxide compound and magnesium silicate, the shell comprises at least two carbon layers comprising a first carbon layer and a second carbon layer, and the second carbon layer is reduced graphene oxide, and thus, during application of the silicon-based carbon composite to an anode active material for a secondary battery, the charge/discharge capacity, initial charge/discharge efficiency and capacity retention of the secondary battery can be improved.

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a silicon-based carbon composite, a preparation method therefor, and an anode active material for a lithium secondary battery, comprising same, and, more specifically, the silicon-based carbon composite of the present invention is a silicon-based carbon composite having a core-shell structure, wherein the core comprises silicon, silicon oxide compound and magnesium silicate, the shell comprises at least two carbon layers comprising a first carbon layer and a second carbon layer, and the second carbon layer is reduced graphene oxide, and thus, during application of the silicon-based carbon composite to an anode active material for a secondary battery, the charge/discharge capacity, initial charge/discharge efficiency and capacity retention of the secondary battery can be improved.