SBIR/STTR Award attributes
The concept here is to modify a lithium air battery to use as a reserve battery. A lithium air battery can be made into a reserve battery by hermetically sealing the cell (specifically the cathode) from the air. Without oxygen, the discharge cannot proceed. This is a disruptive technology. This novel approach offers several very significant advantages: First, lithium-air offers the highest specific energy of any lithium battery (5 times a lithium ion) as the cathode is oxygen. This means that the pulse power is easier to achieve because of the higher capacity. The initiation is faster and easier as the active material is a gas. The cell design is simpler and less cumbersome and offers higher energy density. The use of a DES electrolyte will make the cell non-flammable and much safer with better low temperature performance. As the cell is essentially charged, it eliminates the need of a lithium ion cell for charging, eliminates the risk associated with charging (most incidents occur during charging.) And it will be benign - not having any voltage or capacity until activated by exposure to oxygen thus making it even safer.
