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MoSiLIB: Innovative anode materials for more powerful and sustainable batteries

Modelling and development of silicon-tin sulphide composite anodes for third-generation lithium-ion batteries

Cross-section of an anode developed in MoSiLIB made of SnS₂ and graphite, coated with a water-based formulation and photographed using a scanning electron microscope.
© AIT/Jana Kupka
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The world is facing a key challenge: the increasing demand for energy, particularly through electromobility, requires more powerful and sustainable energy storage systems and a growing share of renewable energies.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) play a key role here, but their further development is hampered by limited resources, environmental pollution and technical limitations of existing materials. The dependence on critical raw materials such as natural graphite and cobalt not only poses a supply risk, but also raises ethical and environmental issues. At the same time, conventional carbon-based anodes are reaching their capacity limits, requiring new material concepts to meet the increasing demands for energy storage.

The MoSiLIB research project led by AIT is addressing precisely this issue and developing an innovative composite anode based on silicon and tin sulphide (SnS2). The aim is to avoid the disadvantages of previous anode materials, reduce the use of critical raw materials and at the same time significantly improve battery performance and cycle stability. A particular focus is on the use of high-purity silicon, which is recycled from disused solar modules. This contributes to the conservation of resources and sustainability.

The chemical interaction of SnS2 with silicon creates Si/Li2S and Sn/Li2S heterostructures that buffer the volume expansion of the anode particles and reduce agglomeration during charging cycles. This increases the service life of the battery, which makes the composite anode particularly suitable for generation 3b LIBs with LNMO cathodes. In addition, the project relies on environmentally friendly, water-based processing methods and scales the technology to a semi-industrial level to ensure feasibility and industrial applicability.

Project goals and methods

The main objective of MoSiLIB is to develop a Si (graphite)-SnS2 composite anode that achieves a reversible capacity of 800 mAh/g over more than 1000 cycles. A novel material processing method based on a combination of spray drying and high-energy ball milling is used for this purpose. The resulting anode materials are tested in complete high-voltage cells with LNMO cathodes.

In addition to experimental research, the project relies on multi-scale modelling to optimise the performance of the anode materials and to understand ageing mechanisms in detail. In addition to material development, another focus is on the semi-industrial scaling of the synthesis processes and water-based electrode production to ensure sustainable and economical production. The newly developed anode materials will be extensively tested in button and pouch cells, including multilayer pouch cells, to validate their long-term performance and scalability.

Contribution of the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology

The AIT plays a central role in MoSiLIB. In addition to project management and coordination, AIT is focussing in particular on electrochemical investigations of SnS2 anodes and LNMO cathodes. The aim is to evaluate their performance and long-term stability under real operating conditions.

Another focus of the AIT is the development and optimisation of processing methods for electrodes on a pilot scale. Using state-of-the-art pilot plants, the scalability of the processes is being investigated and further developed in order to enable the most sustainable and economical production of silicon-tin sulphide composite anodes.

"With MoSiLIB, we are taking a decisive step towards sustainable and high-performance lithium-ion batteries. By combining innovative materials and environmentally friendly manufacturing processes, we can not only improve the efficiency of batteries, but also reduce their ecological impact. This is a significant contribution to the energy storage of the future and the further development of electromobility," explains AIT researcher Damian Cupid, who is leading the project.

Project consortium

AIT Austrian Institute of Technology (coordination)

University of Vienna

AVL List GmbH

Frimeco Produktions GmbH

University of Liège / Greenmat

University of Ljubljana

 

The project is funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG).

About the AIT

Research & development is the central driver of innovation for industry, the economy and society, secures jobs and prosperity and thus strengthens Austria as a business location. Applied research also provides solutions for the major challenges of our time. The AIT Austrian Institute of Technology is Austria's largest research and technology organisation with more than 1,500 employees working on the key infrastructure issues of the future. The AIT focuses on the two interlinked research priorities of "sustainable and resilient infrastructures", particularly in the areas of energy, transport and health, and the "digital transformation of industry and society", working closely with industry and clients from public institutions.

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© AIT/Jana Kupka

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Daniel Pepl
Daniel Pepl, MAS MBA
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