Co-polymerization and blending based PEO/PMMA/P(VDF-HFP) gel polymer electrolyte for rechargeable lithium metal batteries

A novel gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) is prepared based on the co-polymerization of vinylidene fluoride (VDF) and hexafluoropropylene (HFP), the blending of the copolymer P(VDF-HFP) with poly(ethyleneoxide) and Poly(methylmethacrylate), and the absorption of liquid electrolyte of lithium hexafluorophosphate (LiPF 6 ) in ethylene carbonate (EC) + dimethyl carbonate (DMC) (1:1 v/v) as the plasticizer . This GPE has more amorphous region, and can accommodate larger amount of liquid electrolyte via its porous structure without leakage, which provide an ionic conductivity of 0.81   mS   cm −1 at 25   °C. Furthermore, the GPE possesses a high electrochemical window of 5.0   V (vs. Li/Li + ), superior thermal stability, large Li + transport number and excellent interface stability to Li metal anode . The test cells with the GPE, Li metal anode and LiCoO 2 cathode show a superior cycling stability and rate performance. This GPE is promising to be applied to rechargeable Li batteries with high safety and long cycle life.