LiFePO4 water-soluble binder electrode for Li-ion batteries

A new water-soluble elastomer from ZEON Corp. was evaluated as binder with LiFePO₄ cathode material in Li-ion batteries. The mechanical characteristic of this cathode was compared to that with PVdF-based cathode binder. The elastomer-based cathode shows high flexibility with good adhesion. The electrochemical performance was also evaluated and compared to PVdF-based cathodes at 25 and at 60 °C. A lower irreversible capacity loss was obtained with the elastomer-based cathode, however, aging at 60 °C shows a comparable cycle life to that observed with PVdF-based cathodes. The LiFePO₄–WSB at high rate shows a good performance with 120 mAh g⁻¹ at 10C rate at 60 °C.