Polyether-functionalized disiloxanes as new film-forming electrolyte additive for Li-ion cells with graphitic anodes

New type of film-forming electrolyte additive (functional co-solvent) for rechargeable lithium batteries has been demonstrated. The additive prevents solvent co-intercalation and graphite exfoliation in propylene carbonate based electrolytes. The additive performs best at 15% w/w ratio and is a mixture of homologous disiloxanes functionalized with polyether side chains of variable length. Galvanostatic and potentiodynamic charge/discharge characteristics are presented. SEM/EDX analysis has been carried out to evidence the suppression of PC co-intercalation.