The United States of America As Represented by the United States

The University of Chicago

The United States of America As Represented by the United States Energy

Arch Development Corporation

Paul A Nelson

Thomas D Kaun

Donald R Vissers

Zygmunt Tomczuk

Ira D Bloom

Hiroshi Shimotake

William M Swift

Khalil Amine

William E Miller

Dennis W Dees

James E Battles

Laszlo Redey

Michael F Roche

Charles C McPheeters

Richard F Malecha

Jeffrey S Horowitz

Reinhard Knoedler

Albert A Chilenskas

A high power bipolar battery, such as a high power lithium polymer battery is provided. The bipolar battery includes a plurality of multiple cell assemblies. The plurality of multiple cell assemblies is connected in series to form the high power bipolar battery. Each of the plurality of multiple cell assemblies includes a rigid core with a bipolar cell stack of multiple cells wound together around the rigid core to produce a large active cell area. The wound bipolar cell stack includes a positive battery connection and a negative battery connection. A container surrounds the bipolar cell stack. A positive terminal carried by the container is connected to the positive battery connection. A negative terminal carried by the container is spaced apart from the positive terminal and connected to the negative battery connection. A state-of-charge connector carried by the container is spaced apart from the positive and negative terminals. The state-of-charge connector include multiple conductors, each connected to a respective one of the multiple cells.

Wound bipolar lithium polymer batteries

Thermal and chemical remediation of mixed wastes

A device for controlled insulation of a thermal device. The device includes a thermal jacket with a closed volume able to be evacuated to form an insulating jacket around the thermal source. A getter material is in communcation with the closed volume of the thermal jacket. The getter material can absorb and desorb a control gas to control gas pressure in the volume of the thermal jacket to control thermal conductivity in the thermal jacket.

Variable pressure thermal insulating jacket

A process and system for treating organic waste materials without venting gaseous emissions to the atmosphere. A fluidized bed including lime particles is operated at a temperature of at least 500.degree. C. by blowing gas having 20%/70% oxygen upwardly through the bed particles at a rate sufficient to fluidize same. A toxic organic waste material is fed into the fluidized bed where the organic waste material reacts with the lime forming CaCO.sub.3. The off gases are filtered and cooled to condense water which is separated. A portion of the calcium carbonate formed during operation of the fluidized bed is replaced with lime particles. The off gases from the fluidized bed after drying are recirculated until the toxic organic waste material in the bed is destroyed.

Thermal and chemical remediation of mixed waste

A solid oxide fuel cell having a plurality of individual cells. A solid oxide fuel cell has an anode and a cathode with electrolyte disposed therebetween, and the anode, cathode and interconnect elements are comprised of substantially one material.

Solid oxide fuel cell with single material for electrodes and

A method of fabricating an electrode for use in a metal chloride battery and an electrode are provided. The electrode has relatively larger and more uniform pores than those found in typical electrodes. The fabrication method includes the steps of mixing sodium chloride particles selected from a predetermined size range with metal particles selected from a predetermined size range, and then rigidifying the mixture. The electrode exhibits lower resistivity values of approximately 0.5 .OMEGA.cm.sup.2 than those resistivity values of approximately 1.0-1.5 .OMEGA.cm.sup.2 exhibited by currently available electrodes.

Method of electrode fabrication and an electrode for metal chloride

A molten salt electrolyte battery having an increased overcharge tolerance employs a negative electrode with two lithium alloy phases of different electrochemical potential, one of which allows self-discharge rates which permits battery cell equalization.

Molten salt electrolyte battery cell with overcharge tolerance

In a lithium-alloy/metal sulfide high temperature electrochemical cell, cell damage caused by overcharging is avoided by providing excess lithium in a high-lithium solubility phase alloy in the negative electrode and a specified ratio maximum of the capacity of a matrix metal of the negative electrode in the working phase to the capacity of a transition metal of the positive electrode. In charging the cell, or a plurality of such cells in series and/or parallel, chemical transfer of elemental lithium from the negative electrode through the electrolyte to the positive electrode provides sufficient lithium to support an increased self-charge current to avoid anodic dissolution of the positive electrode components above a critical potential. The lithium is subsequently electrochemically transferred back to the negative electrode in an electrochemical/chemical cycle which maintains high self-discharge currents on the order of 3-15 mA/cm.sup.2 in the cell to prevent overcharging.

Overcharge tolerant high-temperature cells and batteries

A secondary electrochemical cell with sodium-sulfur or other molten reactants is provided with a ionically conductive glass electrolyte. The cell is contained within an electrically conductive housing with a first portion at negative potential and a second portion insulated therefrom at positive electrode potential. The glass electrolyte is formed into a plurality of elongated tubes and placed lengthwise within the housing. The positive electrode material, for instance sulfur, is sealed into the glass electrolyte tubes and is provided with an elongated axial current collector. The glass electrolyte tubes are protected by shield tubes or sheets that also define narrow annuli for wicking of the molten negative electrode material.

Electrochemical cell with high conductivity glass electrolyte

A passthrough seal is disclosed for electrically isolating the terminal in a lithium/metal sulfide cell from the structural cell housing. The seal has spaced upper and lower insulator rings fitted snuggly between the terminal and an annularly disposed upstanding wall, and outwardly of a powdered insulator also confined between the upstanding wall and terminal. The adjacent surfaces of the upper insulator ring and the respective upstanding wall and terminal are conically tapered, diverging in the axial direction away from the cell interior, and a sealing ring is located between each pair of the adjacent surfaces. The components are sized so that upon appropriate movement of the upper insulator ring toward the lower insulator ring the powdered insulator and sealing rings are each compressed to a high degree. This compacts the powdered insulator thereby rendering the same highly impervious and moreover fuses the sealing rings to and between the adjacent surfaces. The upper and lower insulator rings might be formed of beryllium oxide and/or alumina, the powdered insulator might be formed of boron nitride, and the sealing rings might be formed of aluminum.

Hermetically sealed electrical feedthrough for high temperature

A heat pump apparatus including a compact arrangement of individual tubular reactors containing hydride-dehydride beds in opposite end sections, each pair of beds in each reactor being operable by sequential and coordinated treatment with a plurality of heat transfer fluids in a plurality of processing stages, and first and second valves located adjacent the reactor end sections with rotatable members having multiple ports and associated portions for separating the hydride beds at each of the end sections into groups and for simultaneously directing a plurality of heat transfer fluids to the different groups. As heat is being generated by a group of beds, others are being regenerated so that heat is continuously available for space heating. As each of the processing stages is completed for a hydride bed or group of beds, each valve member is rotated causing the heat transfer fluid for the heat processing stage to be directed to that bed or group of beds. Each of the end sections are arranged to form a closed perimeter and the valve member may be rotated repeatedly about the perimeter to provide a continuous operation. Both valves are driven by a common motor to provide a coordinated treatment of beds in the same reactors. The heat pump apparatus is particularly suitable for the utilization of thermal energy supplied by solar collectors and concentrators but may be used with any source of heat, including a source of low-grade heat.

Heat pump apparatus

A secondary, high temperature electrochemical cell especially adapted for lithium alloy negative electrodes, transition metal chalcogenide positive electrodes and alkali metal halide or alkaline earth metal halide electrolyte is disclosed. The cell is held within an elongated cylindrical container in which one of the active materials is filled around the outside surfaces of a plurality of perforate tubular current collectors along the length of the container. Each of the current collector tubes contain a concentric tubular layer of electrically insulative ceramic as an interelectrode separator. The active material of opposite polarity in elongated pin shape is positioned longitudinally within the separator layer. A second electrically conductive tube with perforate walls can be swagged or otherwise bonded to the outer surface of the pin as a current collector and the electrically insulative ceramic layer can be coated or otherwise layered onto the outer surface of this second current collector. Alternatively, the central pin electrode can include an axial core as a current collector.

Electrochemical cell having cylindrical electrode elements

An electrode structure for a secondary electrochemical cell includes an outer enclosure defining a compartment containing electrochemical active material. The enclosure includes a rigid electrically conductive metal sheet with perforated openings over major side surfaces. The enclosure can be assembled as first and second trays each with a rigid sheet of perforated electrically conductive metal at major side surfaces and normally extending flanges at parametric margins. The trays can be pressed together with moldable active material between the two to form an expandable electrode. A plurality of positive and negative electrodes thus formed are arranged in an alternating array with porous frangible interelectrode separators within the housing of the secondary electrochemical cell.

Electrode for electrochemical cell

Particles of carbonaceous matrices containing embedded electrode active material are prepared for vibratory loading within a porous electrically conductive substrate. In preparing the particles, active materials such as metal chalcogenides, solid alloys of alkali or alkaline earth metals along with other metals and their oxides in powdered or particulate form are blended with a thermosetting resin and particles of a volatile to form a paste mixture. The paste is heated to a temperature at which the volatile transforms into vapor to impart porosity at about the same time as the resin begins to cure into a rigid, solid structure. The solid structure is then comminuted into porous, carbonaceous particles with the embedded active material.

Electrode including porous particles with embedded active material for

Particles of carbonaceous matrices containing embedded electrode active material are prepared for vibratory loading within a porous electrically conductive substrate. In preparing the particles, active materials such as metal chalcogenides, solid alloys of alkali or alkaline earth metals along with other metals and their oxides in powdered or particulate form are blended with a thermosetting resin and particles of a volatile to form a paste mixture. The paste is heated to a temperature at which the volatile transforms into vapor to impart porosity at about the same time as the resin begins to cure into a rigid, solid structure.The solid structure is then comminuted into porous, carbonaceous particles with the embedded active material.

Growing community of inventors

Wheaton, IL, United States of America

Paul A Nelson