Preparation of All-Solid-State Batteries via 3D Aerosol-Jet Printing in Advanced Energy Materials
Product Introduction
Equipment Parameters
I. Core Research Summary
- Pioneering an integrated AJP solid-state battery manufacturing process
An aerosol-jet printing process is employed to sequentially deposit the LFP composite cathode and a solvent-free PEGDA-based solid-state polymer electrolyte (SPE), followed by in-situ UV crosslinking. This approach ensures seamless wetting between the electrode and the electrolyte, thereby fundamentally reducing interfacial charge-transfer resistance. The cathode active-material loading can reach approximately 10 mg/cm², while the surface‑adjacent pure electrolyte layer is only 24 μm thick.
- Excellent electrochemical performance at both room temperature and elevated temperatures.
At 30°C and a low C-rate of 0.05C, the battery delivers a specific capacity exceeding 130 mAh/g; when the temperature is raised to 60°C and charged at a fast rate of 0.3C, the capacity surpasses 160 mAh/g, approaching the theoretical capacity of LFP, which is 170 mAh/g.
- Diaphragm modification addresses the issue of high-temperature lithium dendrite-induced short circuits.
In membrane-free batteries, high-temperature cycling often leads to lithium dendrite penetration of the separator and internal short circuits. By incorporating an impregnated SPE porous separator–composite electrolyte layer, battery stability is significantly enhanced: at 60°C and a 0.3C rate, after 150 cycles, the capacity retention reaches 97.4%, with an average coulombic efficiency of 99.98%.
- The process has strong versatility.
Aerosol printing is compatible with high-solid-content cathode slurries and solvent-free crosslinked electrolytes, offering a significantly broader viscosity window than conventional 3D‑printing methods such as direct ink writing and FDM. It requires no masks, enables large‑area fabrication, and is well suited for the production of large‑scale solid‑state energy storage devices.
II. Complete Operating Principle of Aerosol Spraying
- Microdroplet atomization
The ink is introduced into the atomization chamber, where ultrasonic atomization generates ultrafine aerosol droplets measuring 2–5 μm. Argon gas serves as the carrier gas, transporting these droplets to the printing nozzle. The two inks—positive electrode slurry and solvent-free electrolyte precursor—can be atomized and printed independently.
- Sheath-gas–assisted precise beam focusing
The nozzle is supplied with a coaxial argon sheath gas, which forms an annular airflow that compresses the aerosol plume. The distance between the print head and the substrate is adjustable from 2 to 10 mm and remains unaffected by substrate surface irregularities or porous structures. This design fully addresses the common issue of inkjet nozzle clogging and enables long‑term continuous printing.
- Layered Stacked Deposition
First, the LFP cathode is printed, vacuum-dried, and then rolled to a porosity of 60%. Second, a solvent-free SPE precursor is printed in multiple layers; the liquid electrolyte can fully infiltrate the cathode’s internal porous channels, rather than remaining only at the surface.
- UV crosslinking curing and molding
After electrolyte printing, UV‑induced crosslinking and curing are performed, eliminating the need for solvent evaporation and establishing a continuous ion‑transport network. A reinforced electrolyte layer can be sequentially deposited by impregnation as required, followed by integration with a metallic lithium anode to fabricate a half‑cell.
III. Five Core Technological Innovations of This Study
Innovation 1: In-situ integrated printing of electrodes and electrolytes, eliminating interfacial voids.
Innovation 2: Solvent-free solid-state electrolyte aerosol–printable formulation
Innovation 3: Stable Preparation of Ultra-High-Area-Capacity Cathodes
Innovation 4: A porous separator–composite strategy to suppress lithium dendrite formation
Innovation 5: Broad viscosity compatibility, suitable for multiple solid-state systems.
IV. Existing Process Challenges and Corresponding Breakthrough Solutions Proposed in This Thesis
Challenge 1: In high-temperature cycling, pure thin electrolytes are prone to lithium dendrite formation, leading to soft short circuits.
Problem: In a 20–30 μm-thick single-layer SPE, under long-term cycling at 60°C, lithium dendrites formed on the lithium metal anode penetrate the electrolyte, leading to oscillations in the charge–discharge curves and eventual battery failure.
✅ Solution: Introduce a porous separator impregnated with a solid electrolyte to construct a composite barrier layer, physically inhibiting dendrite growth and stabilizing the high-temperature cycling system.
Challenge 2: Slow ion diffusion in thick cathodes leads to a sharp drop in high-rate capacity.
Issue: At a high loading of 10 mg/cm², the cathode exhibits substantial thickness and significant ionic transport resistance at room temperature, leading to a pronounced capacity fade above 0.1C.
✅ Solution: Increase the operating temperature to 60°C to enhance the ionic conductivity of the polymer electrolyte, enabling 0.3C fast charging and achieving a capacity close to the theoretical value.
Challenge 3: In electrolyte printing, it is difficult to balance layer thickness with wetting performance.
Problem: Too few printing layers fail to fully cover the positive electrode, while too many layers result in an excessively thick electrolyte, increasing the ion transport distance.
✅ Solution: 25 print layers yield an approximately 23 μm‑thick pure electrolyte top layer, while the precursor fully penetrates the 80 μm‑thick cathode, optimizing both interfacial contact and ion‑transport distance.
Challenge 4: The initial interface of new and old batteries is unstable, leading to rapid capacity decay in the early stages.
Issue: The interface layer of the newly assembled battery has not fully formed, resulting in a continuous capacity decline during the first few hundred cycles.
✅ Solution: The battery is allowed to rest for four weeks to undergo pre‑aging, thereby forming a stable interfacial passivation layer in advance; after 150 cycles, the capacity retention rate remains as high as 97.4%.
Challenge 5: Conventional printing viscosity constraints prevent the simultaneous fabrication of thick electrodes and ultrathin electrolytes.
Issue: Direct writing is only suitable for high-viscosity slurries, making it difficult to fabricate ultra-thin solid electrolytes with thicknesses below 20 μm.
✅ Solution: Aerosol jetting with broad viscosity compatibility—using the same device to sequentially print a high-solid-content cathode and a low-viscosity crosslinked electrolyte, enabling integrated additive manufacturing.
V. Future Application Prospects of Aerosol-Printed All-Solid-State Batteries
1. High-Safety Solid-State Power Battery for Vehicles
2. Aerospace Special Energy Storage Equipment
3. Large-scale stationary energy storage power stations
4. Flexible Wearable Energy Storage Devices
5. Miniature Medical Devices and IoT Power Supplies
Figure 1. a) Schematic diagram of the AJP fabrication process; b) Schematic diagram of the layered cathode/electrolyte formation process.
Figure 2. Schematic of the printing process and corresponding top-view SEM images: a) as‑printed LFP; b) LFP printed to 60% porosity; c) electrode after ten SPE printing steps and UV crosslinking; d) electrode after twenty SPE printing steps.
Figure 3. a) Cross-sectional SEM images of the printed electrode material and its EDX scan; b) Relative weight ratios of phosphorus to carbon measured at different locations within the electrode material; c) EDX elemental maps of carbon; d) EDX elemental maps of phosphorus.
Figure 4. Battery performance testing of the printed ASSB at 30°C. a) Cycling curve of the ASSB at 30°C and a rate of 0.05C; b) Typical charge–discharge curve of the composite electrode. The cell configuration is Li || printed SPE || printed LFP; the thickness of the pure SPE layer is 23 μm, and the cathode mass loading is 9.6 mg·cm⁻².
Figure 5. a) Performance of the enhanced composite‑electrode button cell over a rate range from 0.1 C to 1 C at 60°C; b) Charge–discharge curves of the enhanced composite‑electrode cell at various rates; c) Long‑cycle test results of the novel enhanced composite‑electrode cell at a rate of 0.3 C; d) Representative charge–discharge curves for the first 40 cycles; e) Long‑cycle performance of an “aged” enhanced composite‑electrode cell at 60°C and 0.3 C. The cathode mass loading is 9.8 mg·cm⁻².
Download Materials
Beijing Yunshang Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Co., Ltd.
Hotline(24 hours a day)
Headquarters Address: Room 708, Building 2, HICOOL Industrial Park, Nanfaxin, Shunyi District, Beijing
Follow
Customer service WeChat
WeChat Official Account
COPYRIGHT 2026 Beijing Yunshang Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Co., Ltd.
Powered by 300.cn Privacy Policy
YUNS-123456
Smart Customer Service
WhatsApp：864009005667
Company email：support@chinayuns.com
Telephone：400 900 5667