High-Performance Pressure-Free Silicon All-Solid-State Batteries by Integrated Physical and Digital Twin Techniques

forthcoming

Silicon (Si) presents a promising advancement over current graphite electrodes for high-energy automotive batteries, offering a tenfold greater capacity (3579 mAh g⁻¹). However, its application is hindered by substantial volume changes during charge/discharge cycling that causes rapid degradation. Overcoming this challenge is pivotal to achieve a climate-neutral society. Redefining the conventional paradigm, TWIN-SiNERGY aims to deliver a transformative separator-free monolithic Si all-solid-state battery (ASSB) that far surpasses the current state-of-the-art in energy density, cycle life and charging speed. Notably, it overcomes the longstanding reliance on external pressurisation devices—a critical barrier in ASSBs that cause structural issues in the pack design while driving up costs. This ambitious target will be achieved through my expertise and vision, driving the fabrication of a 3D Porous mSi electrode Reinforced with Integrated Multiscale Engineering (3D-PRIME) underpinned by a bottom-up multiscale manufacturing (BUMM) framework, followed by infiltration and in-situ polymerisation of a trifunctional solid polymer electrolyte. The resulting electrode will feature significantly improved mass transport, ionic and electrical conductivity, reaction kinetics, interfacial stability and reduced volume changes. This BUMM framework is guided by a deeper understanding of the multiscale electro-chemo-mechanical processes and the structure vs. property relationship in mSi electrodes. This is obtained through the integration of physical twin (i.e., operando imaging of a battery in operation) and digital twin (i.e., 3D physics-based and data-driven battery models) techniques. With the rapidly expanding Si electrode industry, TWIN-SiNERGY is both timely and impactful, marking a significant departure from conventional design constraints in ASSBs. It will serve as a cornerstone in positioning Europe as a global leader in new battery chemistries.