Overview
Rechargeable batteries, currently based primarily on lithium ion technology, have been a part of everyday life for many years. With the rapidly growing electric vehicle industry there is a surge in demand for research, development and manufacture of a new generation of enhanced performance batteries. Battery manufacture requires a dedicated supply chain, incorporating the mining and extraction of raw materials, production of purified feedstocks such as lithium hydroxide, cathode active material formulation, electrolyte manufacture and anode production. In addition, recycling of used batteries and environmental analysis relating to manufacturing and recycling processes is also essential. At every step, trace elemental analysis plays a vital role in the battery life cycle.
Explore the downloadable publications below to discover how Thermo Scientific trace elemental analysis instruments meet the demands of your battery material analysis.
Application notes
Learn how to achieve robust, accurate and precise analysis of your cathode, electrolyte and anode materials.
Determination of lithium and other elements in brine solutions
Brine is a major source of lithium and therefore a vital raw material for the battery supply chain. It is difficult to analyze brine for lithium and trace elements due to its very high salt content. Read this application note to learn how ICP-OES provides the sensitivity and stability required to successfully measure both high lithium concentrations and low trace element impurity levels in this challenging matrix.
Detecting and quantifying elements in lithium battery ternary cathode materials
Lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxides (generally abbreviated to NMC) are a key cathode material in many lithium ion batteries. NMC contains lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese at different proportions depending on the specific battery formulation. Accurate and precise measurement of these elements, as well as a range of elemental impurities, is vital for efficient battery performance. This application note describes the performance capabilities of ICP-OES for this essential analysis.
Determination of elemental impurities in lithium iron phosphate
Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) is, like NMC, a widely used material for lithium ion battery cathodes. Accurate and precise measurement of the proportions of lithium, iron and phosphorus in LFP is important to ensure consistent battery performance. Control of trace element impurities in the material is also vital to ensure safety and performance. ICP-OES is equally effective for LFP bulk and impurity analysis, as demonstrated in this application note.
Measuring elemental impurities in lithium hexafluorophosphate electrolyte solutions
Most lithium ion batteries use liquid electrolytes containing a mixture of organic carbonate solvents and lithium hexafluorophosphate for lithium ion transport within the battery. If elemental impurities are present at significant concentrations in the electrolyte, battery performance is degraded and safety, particularly with respect to short circuiting and fire risk, can be compromised. Learn how the flexibility and robustness of ICP-OES enables effective analysis of complex electrolyte solutions in this application note.
Measuring elemental impurities in graphite powder for lithium-ion battery anodes
In addition to the cathode, electrolyte and separator, the anode is a key component in any battery. For lithium-ion batteries, graphite is the most common material used for anode manufacture. As with the cathode and electrolyte, controlling the level of elemental impurities in the anode is important for ensuring safe, reliable and efficient battery operation. Read this application note to learn how to prepare graphite materials and analyze them for elemental impurities.
Composition characterization of lithium-rich minerals as an exploitable source of lithium using ICP-OES
The transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is one of the key developments of the green energy revolution, and global demand for these vehicles is soaring. Lithium-ion batteries are one of the most important power storage materials for EVs due to their power density and life cycle performance.
Analytical instruments
Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES)
Configured as either dedicated radial or dual-view systems, our range of ICP-OES instruments provides flexible, robust multi-element analysis combined with rapid startup and fast sample turnaround capability.
Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP‑MS)
Our ICP-MS instrument portfolio includes both single and triple quadrupole systems for applications ranging from high throughput environmental monitoring of trace metals to elemental analysis in industrial chemicals.
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