Transport property measurement of binary electrolytes using a four-electrode electrochemical cell

• An electrochemical technique is proposed for electrolyte characterization.
• The method uses a four-electrode cell containing WE, CE and two potential sensors.
• The method applies to concentrated binary electrolytes.
• Only one galvanostatic polarization pulse is required in addition to concentration cell data.
• Transport and thermodynamic properties measurements are expedited.

An electrochemical method that is more accurate and less complicated than state-of-the-art techniques is presented to estimate transport properties of concentrated binary electrolytes. The method involves the application of a single galvanostatic polarization pulse to working and counter electrodes in a four-electrode symmetric cell and measurement of both the closed-circuit and open-circuit potential responses across two electrode sensors. A mathematical model is then fitted to the experimental data to obtain the transport properties. This method provides a fast and reliable means to determine transport properties for a wide variety of electrolytes such as in high-power battery applications.