Advanced Multi-stage Constant Current Optimization for Porous Silicon Anodes: Mitigating Diffusion-Induced Stress for Enhanced Electrochemical Performance
摘要
The silicon anode of a battery exhibits significant volume changes during the high-rate charge and discharge process, which exacerbates the rupture of the silicon anode material and leads to capacity degradation and the diminished cycle performance. This work reports the preparation of porous silicon electrode material by chemical etching method and validates the effectiveness of the porous silicon material structure through electrochemical testing in coin cells. Furthermore, an electrochemical-mechanical coupling model of the porous silicon cell is established and validated by employing the voltage response curves at 0.1C, 0.5C, and 1C. Simulation of the diffusion stress of the porous silicon electrode at 1C reveals that the diffusion stress surpasses the material's yield strength in the state of charge range of 0–60%. Additionally, four different multi-stage constant current strategies are devised to optimize the lithiation process in porous silicon cells. Meanwhile, the validation of the optimization strategies is performed through assessments of the electrochemical performance, scanning electron microscopy, and selected area electron diffraction tests. This findings reveal that the optimized porous silicon half-cell retains excellent cycle performance, with the electrode maintaining a relatively intact structure and exhibiting a high-capacity retention rate at elevated temperatures. Specifically, the minimum volume expansions of porous silicon particles at 5, 25, and 55 °C are 45.88%, 18.75%, and 11.99%, respectively, significantly lower than the 280% expansion observed at room temperature for the Li15Si4 alloy phase.