A polyester film and a method for producing the same are provided. The polyester film includes a heat resistant layer. The heat resistant layer includes a high temperature resistant resin material and a polyester resin material. The high temperature resistant resin material and the polyester resin material are melted and kneaded with each other via a twin screw granulator. The twin-screw granulator has a twin-screw temperature between 250° C. and 320° C., and the twin-screw granulator has a twin-screw rotation speed between 300 rpm and 800 rpm, so that the high temperature resistant resin material is dispersed in the polyester resin material with a particle size of between 50 nm and 200 nm.

Link devices include a plurality of link mechanisms which are coupled so as to form an endless chain and can move along two rails. Each of the link mechanisms includes first and second rail holders, a plurality of guide rollers provided on the first rail holder and moving along one rail while rotating, and a plurality of guide rollers provided on the second rail holder and moving along the other rail while rotating. The plurality of link mechanisms include three-roller link mechanisms in each of which three guide rollers are provided on the first rail holder and two-roller link mechanisms in each of which two guide rollers are provided on the first rail holder, and the three-roller link mechanisms and the two-roller link mechanisms are arranged alternately.

Improved battery separators, base films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of making and/or using such separators, films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of enhancing battery or cell charge rates, charge capacity, and/or discharge rates, and/or methods of improving batteries, systems including such batteries, vehicles including such batteries and/or systems, and/or the like; biaxially oriented porous membranes, composites including biaxially oriented porous membranes, biaxially oriented microporous membranes, biaxially oriented macroporous membranes, battery separators with improved charge capacities and the related methods and methods of manufacture, methods of use, and the like; flat sheet membranes, liquid retention media; dry process separators; biaxially stretched separators; dry process biaxially stretched separators having a thickness range between about 5 μm and 50 μm, preferably between about 10 μm and 25 μm, having improved strength, high porosity, and unexpectedly and/or surprisingly high charge capacity, such as, for example, high 10 C rate charge capacity; separators or membranes with high charge capacity and high porosity, excellent charge rate and/or charge capacity performance in a rechargeable and/or secondary lithium battery, such as a lithium ion battery, for high power and/or high energy applications, cells, devices, systems, and/or vehicles, and/or the like; single or multiple ply or layer separators, monolayer separators, trilayer separators, composite separators, laminated separators, co-extruded separators, coated separators, 1 C or higher separators, at least 1 C separators, batteries, cells, systems, devices, vehicles, and/or the like; improved microporous battery separators for secondary lithium batteries, improved microporous battery separators with enhanced or high charge (C) rates, discharge (C) rates, and/or enhanced or high charge capacities in or for secondary lithium batteries, and/or related methods of manufacture, use, and/or the like, and/or combinations thereof are disclosed or provided.

Improved battery separators, base films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of making and/or using such separators, films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of enhancing battery or cell charge rates, charge capacity, and/or discharge rates, and/or methods of improving batteries, systems including such batteries, vehicles including such batteries and/or systems, and/or the like; biaxially oriented porous membranes, composites including biaxially oriented porous membranes, biaxially oriented microporous membranes, biaxially oriented macroporous membranes, battery separators with improved charge capacities and the related methods and methods of manufacture, methods of use, and the like; flat sheet membranes, liquid retention media; dry process separators; biaxially stretched separators; dry process biaxially stretched separators having a thickness range between about 5 μm and 50 μm, preferably between about 10 μm and 25 μm, having improved strength, high porosity, and unexpectedly and/or surprisingly high charge capacity, such as, for example, high 10 C rate charge capacity; separators or membranes with high charge capacity and high porosity, excellent charge rate and/or charge capacity performance in a rechargeable and/or secondary lithium battery, such as a lithium ion battery, for high power and/or high energy applications, cells, devices, systems, and/or vehicles, and/or the like; single or multiple ply or layer separators, monolayer separators, trilayer separators, composite separators, laminated separators, co-extruded separators, coated separators, 1 C or higher separators, at least 1 C separators, batteries, cells, systems, devices, vehicles, and/or the like; improved microporous battery separators for secondary lithium batteries, improved microporous battery separators with enhanced or high charge (C) rates, discharge (C) rates, and/or enhanced or high charge capacities in or for secondary lithium batteries, and/or related methods of manufacture, use, and/or the like, and/or combinations thereof are disclosed or provided.

An ETFE film that has a haze value of 2% or less, and preferably 1% or less, which advantageously may have a thickness greater than 150 pm, and preferably In the range of 200 pm to 300 pm, A film of ETFE, as received from the manufacturer, is stretched under special processing conditions to produce a processed (or final) film having an area stretch factor (Ax) greater than about 1.6. Ax —Initial film thickness/film thickness after stretching. However, it is important that the initial film thickness has a starting thickness of at least 400 pm, and preferably at least 500 pm. Processing conditions Include, in some embodiments, pre-beating and heating during stretching, and post-stretching annealing If the film is stretched in a 2.5×1 or a 4×1 ratio, at a processing temperature in THV range of 130° C. to 150° C., the haze of the resulting film can be reliably brought down to less than 2%. We have also found that this low haze value is not dependent on whether the larger stretch {e.g., 2,5× or 4×) is in the machine direction (MD) or the transverse direction (TD) of the extruded film. Annealing the stretched film decreases the film shrinkage to almost 0%.

An improved nozzle box is disclosed having side walls spaced apart from each other, a base and a ventilation wall spaced apart from it, thereby forming an interior space. A plurality of ventilation openings arranged offset to each other is provided in the ventilation wall, the nozzle box is provided on its ventilation wall with a plurality of protrusions that are raised by at least a height (H) in relation to the sections of ventilation wall or the top side or surface of the ventilation wall the sections being located adjacent to the protrusions, the ventilation openings are configured raised in the region of the protrusions in relation to the top side or surface of the ventilation wall and/or the ventilation wall includes in the transverse direction (Q) of the nozzle box opposing side flanges that overlap the side walls of the nozzle box outside the interior space of the nozzle box.

Provided is a polyolefin microporous membrane in which the membrane thickness is 1.0-17.0 μm inclusive, the flexural modulus, which is the value of the flexural rigidity (gf×cm.sup.2/cm) in the longitudinal direction (MD) divided by the cube of the membrane thickness (μm), is 0.3 (μgf×cm.sup.2/cm)/μm.sup.3 to 1.5 (μgf×cm.sup.2/cm)/μm.sup.3 inclusive, and the basis weight-converted puncture strength is 70 gf/(g/m.sup.2) to 160 gf/(g/m.sup.2) inclusive.

A method of measuring thickness of a liquid layer includes applying a light beam to a liquid layer disposed on a surface of a member, detecting reflected light by a sensor, and analyzing the reflected light according to a spectral interference method with a curve fitting technique to determine the thickness of the liquid layer.

Improved battery separators, base films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of making and/or using such separators, films or membranes, batteries, cells, devices, systems, vehicles, and/or methods of enhancing battery or cell charge rates, charge capacity, and/or discharge rates, and/or methods of improving batteries, systems including such batteries, vehicles including such batteries and/or systems, and/or the like; biaxially oriented porous membranes, composites including biaxially oriented porous membranes, biaxially oriented microporous membranes, biaxially oriented macroporous membranes, battery separators with improved charge capacities and the related methods and methods of manufacture, methods of use, and the like; flat sheet membranes, liquid retention media; dry process separators; biaxially stretched separators; dry process biaxially stretched separators having a thickness range between about 5 μm and 50 μm, preferably between about 10 μm and 25 μm, having improved strength, high porosity, and unexpectedly and/or surprisingly high charge capacity, such as, for example, high 10 C rate charge capacity; separators or membranes with high charge capacity and high porosity, excellent charge rate and/or charge capacity performance in a rechargeable and/or secondary lithium battery, such as a lithium ion battery, for high power and/or high energy applications, cells, devices, systems, and/or vehicles, and/or the like; single or multiple ply or layer separators, monolayer separators, trilayer separators, composite separators, laminated separators, co-extruded separators, coated separators, 1 C or higher separators, at least 1 C separators, batteries, cells, systems, devices, vehicles, and/or the like; improved microporous battery separators for secondary lithium batteries, improved microporous battery separators with enhanced or high charge (C) rates, discharge (C) rates, and/or enhanced or high charge capacities in or for secondary lithium batteries, and/or related methods of manufacture, use, and/or the like, and/or combinations thereof are disclosed or provided.

A polymer thin film includes polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and is characterized by a Young's modulus along an in-plane dimension of at least 4 GPa, an electromechanical coupling factor (k.sub.31) of at least 0.1 at room temperature. A method of manufacturing such a polymer thin film may include forming a polymer composition into a polymer thin film, applying a tensile stress to the polymer thin film along at least one in-plane direction and in an amount effective to induce a stretch ratio of at least approximately 5 in the polymer thin film, and applying an electric field across a thickness dimension of the polymer thin film. Annealing and poling steps may separately or simultaneously accompany and/or follow the act of stretching of the polymer thin film.