Constructing high-toughness polyimide binder with robust polarity and ion-conductive mechanisms ensuring long-term operational stability of silicon-based anodes

Silicon-based materials have demonstrated remarkable potential in high-energy-density batteries owing to their high theoretical capacity.However,the significant volume expansion of silicon seriously hinders its utilization as a lithium-ion anode.Herein,a functionalized high-toughness polyimide(PDMI) is synthesized by copolymerizing the 4,4'-Oxydiphthalic anhydride(ODPA) with 4,4'-oxydianiline(ODA),2,3-diaminobenzoic acid(DABA),and 1,3-bis(3-aminopropyl)-tetramethyl disiloxane(DMS).The combination of rigid benzene rings and flexible oxygen groups(-O-) in the PDMI molecular chain via a rigidness/softness coupling mechanism contributes to high toughness.The plentiful polar carboxyl(-COOH) groups establish robust bonding strength.Rapid ionic transport is achieved by incorporating the flexible siloxane segment(Si-O-Si),which imparts high molecular chain motility and augments free volume holes to facilitate lithium-ion transport(9.8 × 10^(-10) cm^(2) s^(-1) vs.16 × 10^(-10) cm^(2) s~(-1)).As expected,the SiO_x@PDMI-1.5 electrode delivers brilliant long-term cycle performance with a remarkable capacity retention of 85% over 500 cycles at 1.3 A g^(-1).The well-designed functionalized polyimide also significantly enhances the electrochemical properties of Si nanoparticles electrode.Meanwhile,the assembled SiO_x@PDMI-1.5/NCM811 full cell delivers a high retention of 80% after 100 cycles.The perspective of the binder design strategy based on polyimide modification delivers a novel path toward high-capacity electrodes for high-energy-density batteries.

Novel polyimide binder for achieving high-rate capability and long-term cycling stability of LiNi_(0.8)Co_(0.1)Mn_(0.1)O_(2) cathode via constructing polar and micro-branched crosslinking network structure

LiNi_(0.8)Co_(0.1)Mn_(0.1)O_(2)(NCM811)material,as the promising cathode candidate for next-generation highenergy lithium-ion batteries,has gained considerable attention for extremely high theoretical capacity and low cost.Nevertheless,the intrinsic drawbacks of NCM811 such as unstable structure and inevitable interface side reaction result in severe capacity decay and thermal runaway.Herein,a novel polyimide(denoted as PI-Om DT)constructed with the highly polar and micro-branched crosslinking network is reported as a binder material for NCM811 cathode.The micro-branched crosslinking network is achieved by using 1,3,5-Tris(4-aminophenoxy)benzene(TAPOB)as a crosslinker via condensation reaction,which endows excellent mechanical properties and large free volume.Meanwhile,the massive polar carboxyl(-COOH)groups provide strong adhesion sites to active NCM811 particles.These functions of PIOm DT binder collaboratively benefit to forming the mechanically robust and homogeneous coating layer with rapid Li+diffusion on the surface of NCM811,significantly stabilizing the cathode structure,suppressing the detrimental interface side reaction and guaranteeing the shorter ion-diffusion and electron-transfer paths,consequently enhancing electrochemical performance.As compared to the NCM811 with PVDF binder,the NCM811 using PI-Om DT binder delivers a superior high-rate capacity(121.07 vs.145.38 m Ah g^(-1))at 5 C rate and maintains a higher capacity retention(80.38%vs.91.6%)after100 cycles at 2.5–4.3 V.Particularly,at the high-voltage conditions up to 4.5 and 4.7 V,the NCM811 with PI-Om DT binder still maintains the remarkable capacity retention of 88.86%and 72.5%after 100 cycles,respectively,paving the way for addressing the high-voltage operating stability of the NCM811 cathode.Moreover,the full-charged NCM811 cathode with PI-Om DT binder exhibits a significantly enhanced thermal stability,improving the safety performance of batteries.This work opens a new avenue for developing high-energy NCM811 based lithium-ion batteries with long cycle-life and superior safety performance using a novel and effective binder.

Preparation and characterization of polyimide/silica/silver composite films

Polyimide/silica/silver hybrid films were prepared by the sol-gel method combined with in situ singlestage self-metallization technique.The structure of polyimide films in the thermal curing process and the influence of silica content on the migration and aggregation of silver particles to the surface of hybrid films were investigated.The hybrid films were characterized by transmission electron microscopy,dynamic mechanical thermal analysis,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy,ultraviolet visible spectroscopy and mechanical measurements.The results indicated that there was no degradation of the polyimide matrix after the formation of silica and silver particles.Silica acted as the nucleus for the silver particles.With increasing silica content,more and more silver particles were kept in the hybrid films instead of beingmigrated onto the surface of the hybrid films and the reflections of hybrid films decreased gradually.

Electron configurations at 3d orbital of metal ion determining charge transition process in memory devices

Functional polymeric materials with electrical bi-stable states possess significant potential for high-density data storage due to their nanoscale memory site,threedimensional-stacking ability and intrinsic flexibility.Aromatic polyimides bearing donor-acceptor(D-A)skeleton could form the charge transfer complex(CTC)under an electrical field,leading to their feasibility as memory materials.Three novel porphyrinated polyimides DATPP-DSDA,Zn-DATPP-DSDA and Mn-DATPP-DSDA were designed and synthesized for information memory applications.Metal ions with different electron configurations at 3 d orbital have a determining influence on memory behaviors of polyimides:nonvolatile write-once-read-many-times memory(WORM)for DATPP-DSDA,volatile static random access memory(SRAM)for Zn-DATPP-DSDA,but no memory performance for Mn-DATPP-DSDA.By comparing the contribution of orbital transition and hole-electron distribution of chargetransfer excited states,roles of metal ions in regulating memory types were discussed.Molecular simulation results indicate that the Zn ion could play a bridge role in paving the route for excited electrons from a D to an A,while a trap role for the Mn ion in hindering this process.This study proves the feasibility of the strategy for modulating the memory behaviors of porphyrinated polyimides by varying the central metal ion and provides the exact effects of various metal ions on regulating charge transfer processes.