Hyo Jung Kim  Seung-Wan Song  Tae Jun Yoon

10.7464/ksct.2024.30.3.228

Organic electrolytes Open-ended coaxial probe Complex permittivity Microstructural characterization

Electrolytes are one of the essential components of a lithium-ion battery. They determine the battery’s lifespan and cell characteristics. The dielectric constant is a key thermophysical property for determining how much salt can be dissociated and solvated in a solution. Hence, fast and reliable dielectric constant measurement is essential when formulating an electrolyte solution. This work implemented an open-ended coaxial probe (OECP) station as a quick and reliable tool to measure the complex permittivity spectra of electrolyte solutions. The capability of the OECP station was tested by measuring the complex permittivity of propylene carbonate (PC), dimethyl carbonate (DMC), and their mixtures from 0.1 to 8 GHz at 288.15, 298.15, and 308.15 K. The obtained dielectric spectra were then interpreted based on dielectric relaxation models and thermodynamic theories. The measured static dielectric constant data agreed well with the data from previous studies. They were also correlated using the Wang- Anderko thermodynamic model, showing approximately a 1% deviation from the experimental data. In addition, the relaxation characteristics, including the relaxation time and the Cole-Davidson exponent, showed that the microstructure of the solution significantly changes at the propylene carbonate mole fraction of 0.4. These results and methodologies are expected to contribute to the further understanding of electrolyte solutions and ultimately lead to the optimization of electrolyte formulation for lithium-ion batteries.