Page 10 - Shimadzu Journal vol.10 Issue1

Understanding and trusting relationships based on the idea of contributing to each other INSIGHT from CUSTOMER

Mr. Keiji Sumiya

using my experience from analyzing such a wide variety
of materials to consider battery fields from a broad
perspective.

In your diverse development experience,
what are some of the key points for your
team from pioneering such innovative new
technologies for LiB material development?

To overcome analytical challenges in developing LiB
materials, we have been focusing on visualizing the 2D
and 3D distribution of compounds. LiBs have a relatively
simple structure, but they still involve many factors that
need clarification. Basically, LiBs are a combination of pos- Furthermore, given that batteries were invented about
itive electrodes (inorganic powder), negative electrodes 210 years ago and practical applications developed about
(inorganic powder), separators (organic membranes), and 160 years ago, they have a longer history than even ana-
electrolyte solution (organic liquid); consequently, the lytical instruments. Due to high reproducibility, batteries
components of LiBs consist of mixed materials: solid, can be made with almost identical properties by manu-
liquid, inorganic and organic. facturing them with the same conditions. Their relatively
high reliability means battery R&D and product develop-
Cell Cross Section ment can be accomplished to some extent without sophis-
Negative Electrode Positive Electrode ticated analytical instruments. Considering the history and
Charging Li +
background of battery technology in combination with a
general tendency to be not overly dependent on analysis,
it is difficult to claim that progress in battery R&D and prod-
uct development cannot be achieved without an exten-
sive assortment of analytical instruments.

Despite that historical background, why
Discharging
does Showa Denko Materials actively
Binder Binder
Electrolytic Solution Separator continue battery R&D based on analysis?
In particular, the powders in positive and negative elec- A wide variety of batteries are being developed by man-
trodes can be formed into any shape to control their spe- ufacturers around the world, but even if a new battery
cific surface area, but a binder (a non-conductive organic technology is established, it is difficult to achieve wide-
material) is required to form the layered electrode struc- spread adoption unless the technology is broadly recog-
ture. The surface and interface status of these binders and nized. The current popularity of LiBs was triggered by
particles have a major effect on battery properties and their use in mobile phones, without which the current
are key factors in battery development. widespread adoption might never have occurred. Even if
great products are created, unless they are used by man-
What factors make it difficult to analyze ufacturers, many of these battery products will disappear
batteries in such a simple structure? from the marketplace due to low awareness. In those cir-
cumstances, analytical technologies for visualizing the
The main positive- and negative-electrode materials in chemical reactions occurring throughout a sealed battery
LiBs consist of particles that are 10 to 20 μm in diameter provide dev elopment engineers an important tool for
and form a bumpy surface layer. LiBs are very difficult to verifying that specific reactions are actually occurring
analyze due to a charge-discharge reaction affected by a inside the battery. At the same time, visualization tech-
complex interaction between electrical, structural, chem- nology provides peace of mind and confidence to battery
ical reaction, and other factors, and internal materials that users (by verifying functionality) and also serves as a tool
change properties if the battery is unsealed and the ma- for communication between battery developers and
terials are exposed to oxygen, for example. selectors.

Shimadzu Journal vol.10 Issue1 9