Morphology and electrochemical and mechanical properties of polyethylene‐oxide‐based nanofibrous electrolytes applicable in lithium ion batteries

We report the synthesis of all‐solid‐state polymeric electrolytes based on electrospun nanofibers. These nanofibers are composed of polyethylene oxide (PEO) as the matrix, lithium perchlorate (LiClO₄) as the lithium salt and propylene carbonate (PC) as the plasticizer. The effects of the PEO, LiClO₄ and PC ratios on the morphological, mechanical and electrochemical characteristics were investigated using the response surface method (RSM) and analysis of variance test. The prepared nanofibrous electrolytes were characterized using SEM, Fourier transform infrared, XRD and DSC analyses. Conductivity measurements and tensile tests were conducted on the prepared electrolytes. The results show that the average diameter of the nanofibers decreased on reduction of the PEO concentration and addition of PC and LiClO₄. Fourier transport infrared analysis confirmed the complexation between PEO and the additives. The highest conductivity was 0.05 mS cm^?1 at room temperature for the nanofibrous electrolyte with the lowest PEO concentration and the highest ratio of LiClO₄. The optimum nanofibrous electrolyte showed stable cycling over 30 cycles. The conductivity of a polymer film electrolyte was 29 times lower than that of the prepared nanofibrous electrolyte with similar chemical composition. Furthermore, significant fading in mechanical properties was observed on addition of the PC plasticizer. The results obtained imply that further optimization might lead to practical uses of nanofibrous electrolytes in lithium ion batteries. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry