Lithium cobalt oxide battery with an inorganic electrolyte solution.

A new battery system - Li/inorganic electrolyte/LiCoOsub2 - is examined because of its high theoretical energy density of 1070 Wh/kg. Potentiometric cycling of the LiCoOsub2 electrode between 3.5 and 4.5 Vsubvs.Li/Lihighplus demonstrates the stability of the oxide, but there is an increase in the electronic resistance of the electrode. At potentials higher than 4.2 V, chlorine is probably generated in a side reaction, but without any loss of capacity up to 5 V. In order to determine the volatile products, a special DEMS apparatus was constructed which allowed the detection of chlorine generation at a nickel electrode.