Metal secondary battery equipped with a metal electrode

Metal anode secondary battery with dendrite suppression via polydopamine-coated carbon particle protective layer

This technology forms a protective layer on a metal electrode using carbon particles coated with polycatechol (e.g., polydopamine) and a binder. By securing structural stability through hydrogen bonding between the binder and the coating layer, it physically suppresses surface side reactions and dendrite growth on the metal electrode.

Existing protective films lacked the rigidity to suppress alkali metal dendrites, and issues such as reduced ion conductivity and uneven coating prevented them from completely blocking side reactions between the electrolyte and the metal electrode, leading to shortened battery life.

This technology creates a protective layer by dispersing polycatechol-coated carbon particles within an alkali metal ion-conductive binder. Hydrogen bonding between the coating layer and the binder prevents the protective layer from collapsing while inducing uniform pore distribution, which lowers lithium-ion flux density and ensures even metal deposition. It can be applied to next-generation high-energy cells using alkali metal anodes, such as lithium-metal, lithium-air, and lithium-sulfur batteries, reducing anode thickness while lowering the risk of short circuits during repeated charge-discharge cycles.

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Key Features:

• A protective layer disposed on a metal electrode, with polymer-coated carbon particles dispersed within a binder
• A polycatechol polymer coating layer that surrounds the surface of the carbon particles and forms hydrogen bonds with the binder
• Carbon particles that are separated from each other within the binder while surrounded by the polymer coating layer
• A polymer binder that has alkali metal ion conductivity and contains halides, O, or N in its molecular structure

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