Dendrite Suppression and Energy Density in Metal Batteries With Electrolyte Flow Through Perforated Electrodes

Previous research shows that forced advection through porous lithium metal electrodes can eliminate dendrite growth in lithium metal batteries. In this paper, we study the effect of creeping electrolyte flow through perforated metal anodes on dendrite growth and energy density by using a 2D COMSOL Multiphysics model. The flowing electrolyte enhances plating inside the slot (2D model of pore) and reduces plating on the part of electrode directly facing the counter-electrode. This reduces the chances of short circuit via dendrite growth. Higher electrolyte velocity reduces the plating current density in the inter-slot gap and increases the amount of plating in the slot. Larger slot separation and thicker electrodes alleviate dendrite growth but lower the specific charge density. Wider slots enhance the possibility of short circuits and narrower slots may get plugged due to plating inside the hole. Thus, slot width, slot separation, and electrode thickness should be optimized to ensure high specific charge density and non-dendritic plating in the inter-slot gap.