The development of improved and reliable rechargeable battery cells is a must in the transition towards clean energy and clean mobility. To really ensure reliability, the battery cell should be able to automatically sense damage and also to reinstate the virgin configuration together with its functionality. A self-healing programme is therefore developed hand in hand with the sensing one.
The ability to repair damage spontaneously is an important survival feature in nature, so a burning question is if we can mimic natural healing mechanisms to fabricate smart and long-life batteries? The two projects BAT4EVER and HIDDEN focus on this.
BAT4EVER has two main objectives – to develop innovative nanostructured and self-healing polymer supported battery materials, and develop innovative Ionogels embedded and self-healing battery components.
The HIDDEN project aims at preventing dendrite growth in Lithium Metal Batteries (LMB) with the help of three self-healing methods – TILC (i.e. thermotropic ionic liquid crystals), piezoelectric separators, and protecting additives.