Diffusion induced stresses in buckling battery electrodes

Highly networked nanostructured battery electrode materials offer the possibility of achieving both rapid battery charge-discharge rates and high storage capacity. Recently, lithium ion battery (LIB) electrodes based on a 2-D honeycomb architecture were shown to undergo remarkable and reversible morphological changes during the lithiation process. Charge-discharge rates in 3-D composite electrode have also been shown to benefit from sandwiching the electrolytically active material between highly conductive ion and electron transport pathways to reduce electrical resistance and solid-state diffusion lengths. In the present work we simulate and analyze the observed morphological changes in honeycomb electrodes, with and without the presence of conductive pathways, during the lithiation-delithiation process. Diffusion induced stresses are analyzed for such structures undergoing elastic-plastic deformation during cycling. The results show that such a periodic, nanostructured electrode geometry allows for the presence of buckling-like deformation modes, which effectively reduce the resulting mechanical stresses that lead to electrode failure. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.