An electrochemical cell is provided which includes a cathode, an anode, an electrolyte separator, and an anode current collector located on the anode. The anode is a three-dimensional (3D) porous anode including ionically conducting electrolyte strands and pores which extend through the anode from the anode current collector to the electrolyte separator. The anode also includes electronically conducting networks extending on sidewall surfaces of the pores from the anode current collector to the electrolyte separator.

A battery has a cathode, an anode and an electrolyte, with the cathode having a cathode current collector and a cathode material. The cathode material has a cathode active material, which is capable of reversibly intercalating and deintercalating first metal ions. The electrolyte has a solvent capable of dissolving the first metal ions and second metal ions that can be reduced to a metal during a charge cycle and be oxidized from the metal to the dissolved second metal ions during a discharge cycle. The cathode current collector has an electrochemically inert carrier and graphite. The carrier is wrapped by the graphite. The cathode current collector provided has good corrosion resistance and the battery has a long floating charge life and a low cost.

The present invention provides anodes comprising an electrically conductive substrate, comprising at least one non-uniform surface; and a random network of silicon nanowires (Si NWs) chemically grown on said at least one non-uniform surface of the substrate, wherein the Si NWs have at least about 30% amorphous morphology, and methods of manufacturing of the anodes. Further provided are lithium ion batteries comprising said anodes.

A method for production of a magnesium battery with low impedance is provided. A cell is constructed comprising an uncoated current collector anode, an electrolyte system comprising a non-aqueous solvent and a magnesium salt soluble in the non-aqueous solvent, and a cathode. The cell is charged to electrodeposit magnesium metal unto the uncoated current collector to obtain an anode having magnesium metal as the active material. Also provided are rechargeable magnesium batteries obtained by the method.

A polymer electrolyte includes a polyethylene oxide matrix, a plasticizer additive, a solute, and a filler. The plasticizer additive includes an ionic liquid and the filler includes zinc oxide. An energy storage device includes an anode, a cathode and the polymer electrolyte. An energy storage device includes a zinc anode, a cathode and a polymer electrolyte, in which the polymer electrolyte includes a polyethylene oxide matrix and a plasticizer additive that includes an ionic liquid.

A rechargeable battery cell has an organic-liquid electrolyte contacting a dendrite free alkali-metal anode. The alkali-metal anode may be a liquid at the operating temperature that is immobilized by absorption into a porous membrane. The alkali-metal anode may be a solid that wets a porous-membrane separator, where the contact between the solid alkali-metal anode and the liquid electrolyte is at micropores or nanopores in the porous-membrane separator. The use of a dendrite-free solid lithium cell was demonstrated in a symmetric cell with a porous cellulose-based separator membrane. A K.sup.+-ion rechargeable cell was demonstrated with a liquid K—Na alloy anode immobilized in a porous carbon membrane using an organic-liquid electrolyte with a Celgard® or glass-fiber separator.

An object of the present invention is to provide an excellent binder agent composition solving problems such as the decrease in a charge/discharge capacity that occurs in a case where a silicon-containing active material is used, a slurry composition and an electrode in which the binder agent composition is used, and a method for preparing the electrode. The present invention relates to “a binder agent composition containing (A) one or more kinds of polymers containing polyacrylic acid, (B) a bivalent to decavalent alcohol, and (C) water”, “a slurry composition for lithium batteries, containing 1) a silicon-containing active material, 2) a conductive assistant, and 3) the binder agent composition”, “an electrode for lithium batteries that has 1) a silicon-containing active material, 2) a conductive assistant, 3) a binder agent derived from the binder agent composition, and 4) a current collector”, and “a method for preparing an electrode for lithium batteries, including coating a current collector with the slurry composition and drying the slurry composition after the coating”.

Provided herein is a method of manufacturing a nanoscale coated network, which includes providing nanofibers, capable of forming a network in the presence of a liquid vehicle and providing a nanoscale solid substance in the presence of the liquid vehicle. The method may also include forming a network of the nanofibers and the nanoscale solid substance and redistributing at least a portion of the nanoscale solid substance within the network to produce a network of nanofibers coated with the nanoscale solid substance. Also provided herein is a nanoscale coated network with an active material coating that is redistributed to cover and electrochemically isolate the network from materials outside the network.

A metal-ion battery is provided. The metal-ion battery includes a positive electrode, a negative electrode, a separating structure, and an electrolyte, wherein the positive electrode and the negative electrode are separated by the separating structure, and the electrolyte composition is disposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. The separating structure includes a first separator, a second separator, and a dielectric layer, wherein the dielectric layer is disposed between the first separator and the second separator. The dielectric layer consists of a dielectric material, and the dielectric material has a dielectric constant from 10 to 200.

An electrolyte composition and a metal-ion battery employing the same are provided. The electrolyte composition includes a metal chloride, an imidazolium salt of Formula (I), an alkali halide, and an oxalate-containing borate ##STR00001##
wherein R.sup.1, R.sup.2, and R.sup.3 are independently C.sub.1-8 alkyl, C.sub.2-8 alkenyl, C.sub.2-8 alkynyl, C.sub.1-8 alkoxy, C.sub.2-8 alkoxyalkyl, or C.sub.1-8 fluoroalkyl; and X.sup.− is F.sup.−, Cl.sup.−, Br.sup.−, or I.sup.−. The metal chloride is aluminum chloride, iron chloride, zinc chloride, copper chloride, manganese chloride, chromium chloride, or a combination thereof.