Ageing Processes and Lifetime Prediction of Batteries

 

Chair for Ageing Processes and Lifetime Prediction of Batteries (ALB) at RWTH Aachen University of Prof. Figgemeier is part of the Helmholtz Institute Münster (HI MS) and the Research Center Jülich. Our laboratories are operated jointly with Prof. Sauer's group on the Melaten campus in the northwest of Aachen.
The group is engaged in research on fundamental electrochemical processes in batteries. For this purpose, innovative battery materials are investigated in electrochemical experiments and post-mortem analyses. The international team focuses on the development, production and analysis of innovative materials for lithium-based battery cells as well as the testing of novel methods to slow down cell aging and improve cell performance. An important component and research focus of the group to achieve these goals is the prelithiation of electrodes to introduce a lithium reservoir into the cell, which significantly increases the lifetime of batteries.
Our laboratories in the new Center for Ageing, Reliability and Lifetime Prediction for Electrochemical and Power Electronic Systems (CARL) provide an excellent state-of-the-art infrastructure for cell testing and subsequent post-mortem analysis.

 

Main research topics

• Effects of prelithiation of electrodes
• Process optimization of electrochemical prelithiation
• Understanding of degradation mechanisms in batteries
• Innovative anode materials