Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
  • H01M4/00—Electrodes
  • H01M4/02—Electrodes composed of, or comprising, active material
  • H01M4/36—Selection of substances as active materials, active masses, active liquids
  • H01M4/58—Selection of substances as active materials, active masses, active liquids of inorganic compounds other than oxides or hydroxides, e.g. sulfides, selenides, tellurides, halogenides or LiCoFy; of polyanionic structures, e.g. phosphates, silicates or borates
  • H01M4/583—Carbonaceous material, e.g. graphite-intercalation compounds or CFx
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
  • H01M4/00—Electrodes
  • H01M4/02—Electrodes composed of, or comprising, active material
  • H01M4/62—Selection of inactive substances as ingredients for active masses, e.g. binders, fillers
  • H01M4/624—Electric conductive fillers
  • H01M4/625—Carbon or graphite
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01M—PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY
  • H01M4/00—Electrodes
  • H01M4/86—Inert electrodes with catalytic activity, e.g. for fuel cells
  • H01M4/96—Carbon-based electrodes
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
  • Y02E60/00—Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
  • Y02E60/10—Energy storage using batteries
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
  • Y02E—REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION
  • Y02E60/00—Enabling technologies; Technologies with a potential or indirect contribution to GHG emissions mitigation
  • Y02E60/30—Hydrogen technology
  • Y02E60/50—Fuel cells

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a carbon to metal connection and
• the present invention relates to a
• connections to be electrically and thermally conductive
• the higher resistance is generally due to the fact that the
• connections formed are non-uniform, physical only through pressure contact or
• the carbon with copper (Cu) or other metals forms a
• brazing method or any similar method for creating such a bond.
• electroconductive carbon and graphite in the form of fibers, bundles of fibers, cloths and foams in batteries, fuel cells, electrochemical cells, dual graphite energy storage cells, electrochemical reactions and the like, to develop methods for making the lowest possible resistance connections between the carbon/graphite and the metal or metal alloy collector, wire, etc.
• a carbon to metal connection for use in a dual graphite battery including a
• Fig. 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of the encapsulated fiber ends and metal substrate of the electrode component of the present invention
• Fig. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the encapsulated, carbon
• Fig. 3 is a 28,000x scanning electron microscopy picture showing a
• Fig. 4 is a 3,500x scanning electron microscopy picturing showing
• metal/alloy powder metal/alloy powder, and the metal/alloy substrate from a plasma arc
• a item having therein a carbon to metal connection made in accordance with the present invention is generally shown at 10 in Figure 1.
• the item of the present invention includes a carbon to metal connection 16.
• the carbon to metal connection 16 is created by placing a portion of a carbon mate ⁇ al 12 onto a metal material 14 at a location where it is desired to have electrical or thermal contact and joining the carbon material 12
• the carbon materials 12 include, but are not limited to, a single conductive fiber, a multiplicity of conductive fibers, a multiplicity of conductive fibers formed into a
• metal material 14 as used herein the term is intended to
• Example of the metals include, but are not limited to, Ag, Al, Au, Bi, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ga, In, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sb, Sn, Pt, Pd, Ti, Zn, and alloy compounds thereof.
• joining as used herein, the term is meant to include methods which include, but are not limited to, heating, casting, metal sputtering, vacuum deposition of metal, hot tinning, reflow soldering, electron beam welding, chemical vapor deposition, laser welding, inks, and other similar methods known to those of skill in the art.
• coating 18 as used herein, the term is intended to include any
• the coating 18 can include, but is not limited to, an oxidizable
• connections 16 to carbon/graphite most are pressure point, physical only contacts, and often include the use of a low conductive (or non-conductive)
• the physical contacts are frequently non-uniform and can be difficult to
• the method of the present invention creates a lower resistance, more
• Every individual fiber piece is carried completely to the exterior of the device, or to the central area of thermal or electrical collection. Electrically and thermally conductive bonds must, therefore, occur between every individual fiber and the metal 14, then, in turn, every individual fiber to the other fibers in the bundle (tow), every fiber bundle to every other fiber bundle in the cloth formation used, and finally to the entire metal substrate 14 in order to obtain 100% utilization of all carbon/graphite in the
• the invention herein is applicable to a wide variety of conductive
• the invention is applicable to various forms and grades of carbon and graphite particularly graphite fibers, formed from coal tar or petroleum pitches which are heat treated to graphitize to some degree the
• connection to all carbon/graphite is essential to obtain full utilization of the material in any use.
• the connection keeps the amount of the relatively expensive materials to a minimum, which translates to lower product costs and waste. For a battery 10, this also translates to the ability to obtain higher energy densities by using only the stoichiometric amount of
• Carbon/graphite fibers and their various forms, have the least
• Binders themselves, though often called conductive, are not as conductive as the fiber itself. Fibers that have only surface contacts with each other, have a large
• the methods of the present invention provide an improved method for fiber to metal contacts in all forms while maintaining low resistance.
• the present invention provides low resistance electrical and thermal connections 16 that can be prepared between a conductive material (carbon, graphite, and the like) and a conductive metal 20 or metal alloy by plasma arc or resistance welding the cloth, or the material or individual fiber
• connection 16 can be facilitated by the use of a metallic or metallic alloy powder
• resistance electrical and thermal connections 16 are created through the use of heat, casting, metal sputtering, vacuum deposition of metal, hot tinning, reflow soldering, electron beam welding, chemical vapor deposition, or laser welding.
• a working temperature of greater than 800°C is achieved between
• a low resistance electrical and thermal connection 16 can be prepared through the use of a fine granule carbon and solvent based ink or paint which is compressed and heat treated while positioned between the carbon material 12 and the metal substrate 14 thereby allowing a chemical and/or physical bond to form.
• the collector metal 14 can be encapsulated in an electrical insulating material such as a cured resin-hardener blend that is highly cross-
• Resin-hardener blends are relatively easy to handle
• blends can be applied by various means including dipping, roll coating, pressure
• encapsulation can be dispensed with if the conductive
• metal 20/alloy applied is oxidizable to produce a non-conductive coating 18 or
• the least amount of collector weight and area used by the collector is typically an important consideration, since it is this collector that generally contributes the most in terms of weight, space, and often cost Specifically in a battery 10, the reduced amount of collector translates to improved energy density of the end products, which in turn provides more possible end uses, and lower costs
• a woven cloth contains continuous fibers
• woven cloth has fiber ends exposed on four sides The woven cloth then requires at least two edges of collection to utilize all carbon/graphite materials in the cloth, and thus takes more space and weight for current collection than for
• cloths, or braids such as biaxial or triaxial, contain continuous fibers that run in
• carbon/graphite foam or mat of thermally bonded fibers, requires only one point of collection to attach all carbon/graphite together, since the material is fused together creating essentially one continuous fiber.
• the thickness of the metallic collection material is also critical to overall battery energy density. In dual graphite energy storage systems the metallic collection material is not directly involved in the battery processes, except to carry electrical energy to and from the device. The metallic collection material is then considered an inactive weight material. When an inactive
• the cell energy density is increased; therefore, the less collector material, the higher the energy density.
• the flexible fibers are able to stay within a set geometry during
• the metal collector 14 can be alternatively coated with an oxide or
• the conductive metal 20/alloy applied as the collector is oxidizable to produce a non-conductive coating 18 or surface which is non-reactive under the conditions of use.
• unidirectional cloth 12 sits essentially perpendicular to the length of the metal
• a working gas of Ar is also required for the arc weld to occur
• the metal powder used is Ti/Cu (50/50 by weight)
• the metal powder is fed into the weld tip during the weld process so that the feed rate (i e g/sec) deposits an appropriate amount of powder for the table speed
• the table is moved automatically (electronically controlled), so that the tip movement rate allows for a good weld
• Table rate is dependent upon powder feed rate to avoid "puddles" of powder
• the foil with a thickness of O.OIOinch is positioned in a metal brake to fold the metal ribbon 90 degrees at center.
• the desired carbon fiber cloth piece 12 is cut from a unidirectional cloth of approximately 60MSI carbon graphite fiber.
• the cloth end fibers 12 are submersed in a powder bath to help increase the penetration of the bonding into the bulk of the carbon fiber tows 12.
• the powder used in this case is Ti/Cu/Ni (60/15/25 by weight).
• the fiber 12 is positioned in the bend of the metal ribbon so that the carbon fiber unidirectional cloth 12 is essentially surrounded by the metal ribbon (or foil strip), and is tucked into the folded metal 14.
• the folded metal containing the powder and fiber is then mechanically
• the metal substrate 14 which in this case
• the desired carbon fiber cloth piece 12 is cut from a unidirectional cloth of approximately 60MSI carbon graphite fiber.
• the cloth end fibers 12 are submersed in a carbon ink bath to help increase the penetration of the paint into the bulk of the carbon fiber tows 12.
• the ink used in this case is Engelhard Corp. carbon ink "LT1 A6162-XA”.
• the fiber is positioned in the bend of the Al metal ribbon so that the carbon fiber unidirectional cloth 12 is essentially surrounded by the metal ribbon (or foil strip), and is tucked into the
• the folded metal containing the ink and fiber is then mechanically pressed together for a superficial bond. All materials are then placed in a constant temperature oven.

Landscapes

• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• Electrochemistry (AREA)
• General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Inorganic Chemistry (AREA)
• Secondary Cells (AREA)
• Battery Electrode And Active Subsutance (AREA)
• Inorganic Fibers (AREA)
• Woven Fabrics (AREA)
• Arc Welding In General (AREA)
• Inert Electrodes (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (7)

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• 2001
  • 2001-01-26 JP JP2001554826A patent/JP2003520687A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-01-26 AU AU2001231161A patent/AU2001231161A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-01-26 AU AU2001231185A patent/AU2001231185A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-01-26 WO PCT/US2001/002634 patent/WO2001054856A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2001-01-26 CA CA002365630A patent/CA2365630A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-01-26 WO PCT/US2001/002778 patent/WO2001056100A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2001-01-26 EP EP01903331A patent/EP1183746A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-01-26 CA CA002368680A patent/CA2368680A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-01-26 CA CA002365631A patent/CA2365631A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2001-01-26 JP JP2001555154A patent/JP2003521101A/ja not_active Withdrawn
  • 2001-01-26 WO PCT/US2001/002533 patent/WO2001056101A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2001-01-26 EP EP01903357A patent/EP1180067A4/de not_active Withdrawn
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  • 2001-01-26 AU AU2001236560A patent/AU2001236560A1/en not_active Abandoned
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