(5e) Convection Battery - Elimination of Dendrite Failure

The convection battery pumps liquid electrolyte between the electrode and counter-electrode.  It is different from flow batteries in that the same electrolyte is used by both electrodes and the active reagents are stored as solids.  This paper is on lithium-ion chemistry performance in the battery.

The convection battery allows for unique degrees of freedom to remove heat and to eliminate dendrite modes of failure.  This paper describes experimental techniques to first generate dendrite mode of failure on a consistent basis and then to alter the performance using operation specific to the convection battery to eliminate the failure.

Major advantages of operation without dendrite mode of failure include:  reduced battery costs, higher and more-consistent battery voltages, and higher energy densities.  A typical carbon:lithium ration for intercalation is 6:1.  By example, a lithium-plated carbon electrode has about one sixth the carbon and about one third the price of an electrode based on intercalation.