A lithium-sulfur cell includes a lithium-containing anode, a sulfur-containing cathode and a separator arranged between the lithium-containing anode and the sulfur-containing cathode. To suppress a shuttle mechanism and to prevent a loss of active material, the separator includes a base layer and a polysulfide barrier layer. The polysulfide barrier layer is formed on the cathode side of the separator.

A battery is provided, which includes an anode and a cathode. The anode includes a first current collector and anode active material. The anode active material is lithium metal or lithium alloy. The cathode includes a second current collector and cathode active material. The battery also includes an electrolyte film disposed between the cathode and the anode, and a porous film disposed between the electrolyte film and the anode. The battery includes an anolyte in the porous film between the electrolyte film and the anode, and a catholyte between the electrolyte film and the cathode. The catholyte is different from the anolyte, and the anolyte and the catholyte are separated by the electrolyte film and are not in contact with each other.

A solid-state ion conductor including a compound of Formula 1:
Li.sub.1+(4a)yA.sup.a.sub.yM.sub.1yXO.sub.5Formula 1
wherein, in Formula 1, A is an element of Groups 1 to 3 or 11 to 13, or a combination thereof, wherein an oxidation state a of A is 1a3, M is an element having an oxidation state of +4 of Groups 4 or 14, or a combination thereof, X is an element having an oxidation state of +5 of Groups 5, 15, 17, or a combination thereof, and 0<y1.

A negative electrode material applied to a lithium battery or a sodium battery is provided. The negative electrode material is composed of a first chemical element, a second chemical element and a third chemical element with an atomic ratio of x, 1x, and 2, wherein 0<x<1, the first chemical element is selected from the group consisting of molybdenum (Mo), chromium (Cr), tungsten (W), manganese (Mn), technetium (Tc) and rhenium (Re), the second chemical element is selected from the group consisting of Mo, Cr and W, the third chemical element is selected from the group consisting of sulfur (S), selenium (Se) and tellurium (Te), and the first chemical element is different from the second chemical element.

The present invention relates to the application of a force to enhance the performance of an electrochemical cell. The force may comprise, in some instances, an anisotropic force with a component normal to an active surface of the anode of the electrochemical cell. In the embodiments described herein, electrochemical cells (e.g., rechargeable batteries) may undergo a charge/discharge cycle involving deposition of metal (e.g., lithium metal) on a surface of the anode upon charging and reaction of the metal on the anode surface, wherein the metal diffuses from the anode surface, upon discharging. The uniformity with which the metal is deposited on the anode may affect cell performance. For example, when lithium metal is redeposited on an anode, it may, in some cases, deposit unevenly forming a rough surface. The roughened surface may increase the amount of lithium metal available for undesired chemical reactions which may result in decreased cycling lifetime and/or poor cell performance. The application of force to the electrochemical cell has been found, in accordance with the invention, to reduce such behavior and to improve the cycling lifetime and/or performance of the cell.

Process for synthesizing a material, the process including the steps consisting in: a) providing a plurality of powders including: at least one powder including lithium, at least one powder including, for more than 95.0% of its mass, a transition metal chosen from titanium, cobalt, manganese, nickel, niobium, tin, iron and mixtures thereof, and at least one powder including, for more than 95.0% of its mass, a chalcogen element chosen from sulfur, selenium, tellurium and mixtures thereof, b) preparing a particulate mixture by mixing all the powders of the plurality or by mixing one of the powders of the plurality with a milled material obtained by milling a particulate assembly formed by mixing at least two of the other powders of the plurality, and milling the particulate mixture to form the material.

Provided is a lithium battery cathode electrode comprising multiple particulates of a cathode active material, wherein at least a particulate comprises one or a plurality of particles of a cathode active material being encapsulated by a thin layer of a sulfonated elastomer, wherein the encapsulating thin layer of sulfonated elastomer has a thickness from 1 nm to 10 m, a fully recoverable tensile strain from 2% to 800%, and a lithium ion conductivity from 10.sup.7 S/cm to 510.sup.2 S/cm. The encapsulating layer may further contain an electron-conducting additive and/or a lithium ion-conducting additive dispersed in the sulfonated elastomer.

A lithium sulfide (Li.sub.2S.sub.w)-lithium phosphorus sulfide (Li.sub.xP.sub.yS.sub.z) composite, electrochemical cells comprising the same, and methods for making the same are described herein. By the mechanochemical method described herein, the Li.sub.2S.sub.wLi.sub.xP.sub.yS.sub.z composite can be formed and used as the active material in a positive electrode for a variety of electrochemical cells. It is shown herein that the composite is an electrochemically active cathode material. Further, it has been shown that the Li.sub.2S.sub.wLi.sub.xP.sub.yS.sub.z composite shows increased resistance to decomposition and H.sub.2S generation than Li.sub.2S.

Provided are hybrid active material structures for use in electrodes of electrochemical cells and methods of forming these structures. A hybrid active material structure comprises at least one first substructure and at least one second substructures, each comprising a different layered active material and interfacing each other. Combining multiple layered active materials into the same structure and arranging these materials in specific ways allow achieving synergetic effects of their desirable characteristics. For example, a layered active material, which forms a stable solid electrolyte interface (SEI) layer, may be form an outer shell of a hybrid active material structure and interface with electrolyte. This shell may surround another layered active material, which has a higher capacity but would otherwise forma a less stable SEI layer. Furthermore, multiple layered active materials may be arranged into a stack, in which one of these materials may operate as an ionic and/or electronic conductor.

Methods of synthesizing few-layer two-dimensional (2D) Sb.sub.2S.sub.3 nanosheets using scalable chemical exfoliation are provided. The 2D Sb.sub.2S.sub.3 nanosheets can be developed as bi-functional anode materials in both lithium ion batteries and sodium ion batteries. The unique structural and functional features brought by 2D Sb.sub.2S.sub.3 nanosheets can offer short electron/ion diffusion paths and abundant active sites for surface redox reactions.