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Focused Ion Beam Fabrication of LiPON-based Solid-state Lithium-ion Nanobatteries for In Situ Testing
Published on: March 7, 2018
Mitigating Succinonitrile-Li Molecular Crosstalk in In Situ Polymerization toward High-Voltage and Low-Temperature
Shuai Liu1, Rujian Fu1, Mengfan Zhao1
1College of Materials Science and Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan, Shanxi 030024, P. R. China.
Journal of the American Chemical Society
|June 4, 2026
Summary
Methoxy-functionalized 3-methoxypropionitrile enhances solid-state lithium metal battery performance by improving low-temperature kinetics and interfacial stability. This molecular strategy overcomes plasticizer reactivity, enabling stable cycling in advanced battery designs.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Polymer Chemistry
Background:
- In situ polymerization is promising for solid-state lithium metal batteries (LMBs) due to tight interfacial contact.
- Current limitations include poor low-temperature Li+ kinetics and instability with high-voltage cathodes.
- Succinonitrile (SN) as a plasticizer improves conductivity but shows high reactivity with Li metal, causing interfacial issues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To address the SN-Li molecular crosstalk and improve the performance of solid-state LMBs.
- To develop a methoxy-functionalized strategy for enhanced low-temperature kinetics and interfacial stability.
Main Methods:
- Methoxy-functionalization of SN to create 3-methoxypropionitrile (MPN).
- Incorporation of MPN into an in situ polymerized poly(1,3,5-trioxane) electrolyte.
- Characterization of electrolyte properties (ionic conductivity, Li+ transfer number, electrochemical stability) and battery performance (cycling stability, capacity retention) at low temperatures.
Main Results:
- MPN significantly lowers the freezing point to -62.9 °C, enhancing low-temperature Li+ kinetics.
- The functionalized electrolyte exhibits high oxidation resistance (>5.0 V stability window) and improved Li+ kinetics via ion-dipole interactions.
- Achieved high ionic conductivity (0.9 × 10-3 S cm-1) and Li+ transfer number (0.70) at -20 °C.
- Demonstrated stable cycling with high capacity retention (~100%) for Li∥LiFePO4 cells after 1500 cycles at 10 C.
- All tested full cells (Li∥LFP, Li∥NCM811, Li∥NCM622, Li∥LCO) showed stable operation at -20 °C and -40 °C.
Conclusions:
- The methoxy-functionalization strategy effectively overcomes the interfacial incompatibility of traditional plasticizers in solid-state LMBs.
- MPN-based electrolytes enable stable and high-performance operation of solid-state LMBs at sub-zero temperatures.
- This approach advances the practical application of solid-state lithium metal batteries.
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