Described herein are electrodes, electrochemical cells, methods of making electrodes and methods of making electro-chemical cells. The electrodes described herein have an interface layer or material that can stabilize reversible alkali metal deposition. The interface material may correspond to or be a solid-electrolyte interphase that can allow alkali metal ions to transmit through and be deposited below the interface material. The interface material can prevent dendrite formation and/or decomposition of the electrolyte, enabling use of lithium metal safely in a secondary (i.e., rechargeable) electrochemical cell. The interface material may comprise a combination of one or more metals, one or more chalcogens, and one or more other elements or organic functional groups.

An electrode includes a base material and an active material layer. The active material layer is disposed on a base material surface. One or more grooves are formed on an active material layer surface. The one or more grooves linearly extend along the surface of the active material layer. In a plan view, each of the one or more grooves includes an inlet region, an intermediate region, and an outlet region. Each of the inlet region and the outlet regions is configured such that a first pressure loss occurring when a fluid flows in a forward direction is smaller than a second pressure loss occurring when the fluid flows in a backward direction.

A lithium secondary battery includes a positive electrode, a negative electrode, a lithium ion conductive nonaqueous electrolyte, and a separator disposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode. On the negative electrode, lithium metal deposits during charging, and the lithium metal is dissolved during discharging; the negative electrode includes a negative electrode current collector, and a plurality of layers stacked on the negative electrode current collector; the plurality of layers include a first layer, a second layer, and a third layer; of the first to third layers, the first layer is closest to the negative electrode current collector, and the third layer is farthest from the negative electrode current collector; the first layer contains a material capable of storing lithium ions; the second layer contains lithium metal, and the third layer has an insulation property and a lithium ion permeability.

An electrochemical cell and a method of preparing the electrochemical cell are provided. The electrochemical cell, such as a lithium battery or a solid-state lithium ion battery, includes a first electrode having a solid polymer electrolyte deposited thereon, wherein the solid polymer electrolyte comprises a microporous polymer swollen with an organic carbonate liquid and a dissociable lithium salt, and a second electrode. The method of preparing an electrochemical cell includes providing the first electrode, immersing the first electrode in an electrolyte solution, depositing the solid polymer electrolyte on the immersed first electrode, and attaching the second electrode to an exposed surface of the solid polymer electrolyte, thereby forming the electrochemical cell. During operation, the solid polymer electrolyte is capable of growing a passivating polymer layer at an interface between the first electrode and the solid polymer electrolyte.

An apparatus for pre-lithiating a negative electrode includes a pre-lithiation reactor having a pre-lithiation solution accommodated therein, a high-pressure chamber surrounding the pre-lithiation reactor, wherein an internal air pressure of the high-pressure chamber is configured to exceed atmospheric pressure, at least one lithium metal counter electrode disposed in the pre-lithiation solution, the lithium metal counter electrode being disposed to face a negative electrode receivable in the pre-lithiation solution in a state that the lithium metal counter electrode is spaced apart from the negative electrode by a predetermined interval, and a charge and discharge unit being connectable to the negative electrode and the lithium metal counter electrode to provide a circuit.

A negative electrode pre-lithiation method comprising the steps of: manufacturing a negative electrode by forming, on a negative electrode current collector, a negative electrode active material layer comprising a negative electrode active material. Then, manufacturing a pre-lithiation cell, which comprises the negative electrode and a lithium metal counter electrode, and impregnating the pre-lithiation cell with a pre-lithiation solution; and charging the pre-lithiation cell with a constant voltage to form a pre-lithiated negative electrode. The pre-lithiation solution comprises 3 vol % to 30 vol % of an organic carbonate compound substituted with halogen.

A lead-based alloy containing alloying additions of bismuth, antimony, arsenic, and tin is used for the production of doped leady oxides, lead-acid battery active materials, lead-acid battery electrodes, and lead-acid batteries.

A system and method for forming a metallic ion intercalated layered structure can include a housing, an electrolyte disposed in the housing, a counter-electrode disposed in the housing, and a working electrode disposed in the housing. The working electrode comprises a metallic support; and an electrode paste. The electrode paste can include an active material and a binder. The system can be used to form a layered structure having metallic ions from the metallic support intercalated into the layered structure based on cycling the working electrode.

Pre-lithiation methods using lithium vanadium fluorophosphate (e.g., LiVPO.sub.4F and its derivatives) (“LVPF”) as a cathode active material in a lithium-ion secondary battery. The pre-lithiation methods include compensating for an expected loss of active lithium by selecting LVPF having a specific pre-lithiated chemistry (or a blend of LVPF selected to have a specific pre-lithiated chemistry) and selecting a total amount of the pre-lithiated LVPF. The pre-lithiation methods may include initially charging the lithium-ion secondary battery at the lower of the two charge/discharge plateaus of LVPF to release active lithium.

This disclosure relates to semi-solid electrodes which are pre-formed prior to inclusion in lithium ion batteries, lithium ion batteries which incorporate the semi-solid electrodes and methods of making the semi-solid electrodes. An electrochemical cell includes a semi-solid anode formed of anode active material injected with an electrolyte and a first electrolyte additive, the semi-solid anode having a first SEI layer; and a semi-solid cathode formed of a cathode active material injected with an additional electrolyte and a second electrolyte additive, the semi-solid cathode having a second SEI layer, wherein the first electrolyte additive and the second solid electrolyte additive are different.