Fluorinated Carbon Nanosphere Electrodes with Tunable Particle/Pore Size for Li/CFx Primary Batteries

The primary goal of the proposed research effort is to develop fluorinated carbon nanosphere electrodes with tunable particle/pore size for Li/CFx batteries. The Li/CFx system has the highest specific energy density of any commercial primary battery, has a long shelf-life, and a wide temperature range of operation. The Li/CFx system suffers from some disadvantages, including poor power performance, high self-heating, and voltage delay during cell discharge. We propose to address these deficiencies through the synthesis of novel carbon nanosphere electrodes derived from carbohydrate precursors, using hydrothermal synthesis. Hydrothermal synthesis is a low-cost, environmentally-benign process for the production of numerous materials ranging from ceramics to nano-structured carbons. Nanosphere diameters are highly controllable through the appropriate choice of precursor concentration and reaction conditions, yielding materials with monodisperse diameters ranging from 50 nm-1 micron. Nanospheres will be fluorinated to produce materials with a broad range of CFx compositions, and electrochemical performance will be evaluated to produce optimal fluorinated cathodes with enhanced gravimetric and volumetric energy densities, as well as power performance.