Test requirements
- Lithium-ion batteries with solid-state electrolytes are considered a future battery technology that, with advantages in safety, energy density, and fast-charging capability, is clearly superior to current battery generations. The components used consist of complex material composites that must be optimally matched to each other electrochemically and mechanically. Since the liquid electrolyte is no longer used as a connecting link, challenges of solid-state batteries such as boundary layer contacting, thermal expansion and aging resistance must be solved for solid-state batteries. High-precision mechanical testing enables the material composites and structures to be comprehensively characterized.
- If an anode made of lithium metal is used, then its mechanical characterization is especially challenging. Specimen preparation and determination of the tensile strength of lithium metal must take place in an inert gas environment due to severe degradation. Additionally, the sensitive ductile material must be very carefully fed into the special specimen grips and aligned. Reliable determination of the longitudinal strain is only possible with adapted optical laser extensometers without touching the specimen.
- Another challenge is determining the mechanical properties of other components such as the composite cathode or the solid-state electrolyte separator. The strengths of these components are crucial for the design of the production processes and safe, reliable functionality in battery operation. Solid-state electrolytes are typically made of polymers, oxides or sulfides and exhibit a wide range of mechanical properties according to their affiliation, which can range from brittle to ductile. During characterization, the elasticity modulus, hardness, flexural strength, and fracture toughness are examined, for which Nanoindenter hardness testers are used.
ZwickRoell testing solution
- zwickiLine to AllroundLine, adapted pneumatic grips, insertion aid for films and laserXtens
- ZHN hardness tester
