Postmortem Analysis of 18650 Graphite/LFP Cells in a Long-Term Aging Study for Second-Life Applications

Second-life applications for lithium-ion batteries offer industry opportunities to defer recycling costs, enhance economic value, and reduce environmental impacts. However, cells are affected by numerous aging phenomena which can lead to an acceleration in capacity loss. This paper uses postmortem techniques to compare aging phenomenon in 1.1 Ah 18650 graphite/LFP cells, examining the differences between a pristine cell and three cells aged to 40~30% of state of health (SoH). Macroscopic and microscopic techniques are used to identify aging phenomenon occurring in the cell on both positive and negative electrodes. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) and scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) with back-scattered electron (BSE) detector are used to analyze each electrode. These methods are used to analyze the morphology and the material on each electrode. The results show a stable positive LFP electrode whereas numerous deposits and cracking occurred on the negative electrode. A discussion of the appearance of those aging phenomenon is presented. Impacts for industrial cells in second-life applications are finally discussed.