Towards a Universal Model for Eutectic Electrolytes in Zinc Batteries by Operando Diagnosis

The demands of the Paris Agreement mean that we must shift toward a cleaner energy and transportation infrastructure. This requires new energy storage technologies. The rechargeable aqueous zinc battery (AZIB) offers a cheap, sustainable, safe, and high storage capacity solution suitable for complementing the intermittency of renewables, alongside commercial applications spanning transport to flexible ‘smart’ apparel. As a relatively nascent technology, AZIBs unfortunately suffer from fundamental materials chemistry issues, undergoing rapid performance decay over repeated charge/discharge cycles. I am an experienced researcher in eutectic electrolytes, a type of electrolyte with strong interactions between its constituent components, and I believe they can pose a solution to many of the failures that occur in AZIBs. However, understanding the complexity going on inside an operating battery is notoriously difficult, yet doing so is necessary to unlock the fundamental knowledge required for me to design the ideal electrolyte to combat AZIB capacity fade. Working with Dr Robertson at Warwick University, I will learn how to perform advanced insitu characterisation of AZIBs, across X-ray spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and use them to diagnose these complex processes. This will allow me to design an optimal eutectic electrolyte for AZIBs, which I will then investigate for scale-up feasibility at Warwick’s battery pilot line.My research objectives:-Reveal the role of different eutectic electrolyte compositions on the AZB metal anode.-Diagnose why AZIB cathodes are more robust when cycled with certain eutectic electrolytes-Design a suitable eutectic electrolyte for a full-cell AZIB, taking into account industrial scale-up considerations.Supported by gaining technical training in operando electrochemical TEM and X-ray diffraction, in-situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and an introduction to pilot-line scale-up of new battery technology.