Measurement of Degradation in Lithium-ion Batteries.

Li-ion batteries have gained popularity primarily due to improved design, research advancement and mass production. Although mass manufacture has made Li-ion batteries cheaper, widespread adoption, especially in electric vehicles, is still hindered as battery lifetimes fall below consumer expectations. This is notable in applications requiring high durability such as transport and power generation. Additionally, to help reduce range anxiety and improve the operational convenience, fast-charging of Li-ion batteries is required for mass adoption of the Li-ion technology. However, inappropriate fast charging can rapidly accelerate battery degradation and even trigger degradation mechanisms that would normally be absent in operating conditions. The above hinderances emphasizes the need to better understand the causes and mechanisms of degradation to enable improved prediction and control of the state of health of battery systems.

This research is therefore focused on battery degradation, a project under the Faraday Battery Challenge, which is part of UK's Industrial Strategy Challenge. With a cross-disciplinary consortium of researchers and industry partners, the challenge aims to support scientific and technology development for batteries in the UK. A major activity sponsored by the Faraday Institution is extending battery life by understanding the degradation of Li-Ion batteries (LIB).

The remit of this research includes investigation of degradation of LIBs, modelling and study of LIBs and development of novel external measurement circuitries to determine degradation and compare results with existing measurement techniques. The main work will involve simulation, design, construction and test of measurement circuits, data acquisitions, understanding and correcting measurement errors.