An aqueous rechargeable lithium battery based on doping and intercalation mechanisms

Abstract

An aqueous rechargeable lithium battery (ARLB) using an electroactive polymer, polypyrrole (PPy), as a negative electrode; a lithium ion intercalation compound LiCoO 2 as a positive electrode; and Li 2SO 4 aqueous solution as an electrolyte and its working mechanism are described. The charge/discharge process is associated with the doping/un-doping of anions at the negative electrode and intercalation/deintercalation of lithium ions at the positive electrode. The average output voltage of the PPy//LiCoO 2 battery is about 0.85 V. This battery exhibits excellent cycling performance. This new technology solves the major problem of poor cycling life of ARLBs and will provide a new strategy to explore advanced energy storage and conversion systems. © Springer-Verlag 2009.