Synergetic effect of functional additions on Li/NiCl2 thermal battery with enhanced discharge performance

In order to solve the leakage problem of NiCl2 in thermal batteries, TiN is introduced as an addition into thermal battery for the first time. Compared with the traditional MgO addition, the addition of TiN can increase the discharge voltage and reduce the battery’s internal resistance to 0.33 Ω. Specific capacity can reach 387.3 mAh/g (cut-off voltage 1.5 V). Composite additions (MgO/TiN) possesses synergistic effect of bonding and electrical conductivity, which significantly improves the discharge performance of the battery with a specific capacity of 320 mAh/g, specific energy of 741.62 Wh/kg, and a maximum specific power of 3.70 kw/kg (0.1 A/cm2, cut-off voltage: 0.3 V). In addition, the active material content of the cathode did not change, which ensures the specific energy of the battery.