Influence of the Fluorination Degree of Organophosphates on Flammability and Electrochemical Performance in Lithium Ion Batteries: Studies on Fluorinated Compounds Deriving from Triethyl Phosphate

Three symmetric substances originating from triethyl phosphate were specifically synthesized with varying degree of fluorination at the side chain. Different concentrations of each phosphate were evaluated as co-solvent with regard to their flammability and the electrochemical cycling performance. With higher degree of fluorination and a higher amount of the phosphate in the electrolyte, the self-extinguishing time (SET), a value to determine and compare the flammability of electrolytes, could be significantly lowered to yield a non-flammable electrolyte mixture. A specifically designed SET device is introduced, which offers more accurate results due to lowered standard deviations by minimizing random and systematic errors. As the application of phosphates as co-solvents results in a trade-off in cycling performance, a thorough determination in regard to the ionic conductivity, the anodic oxidation stability and the compatibility with anode and cathode material was carried out in half- and full-cells. The manuscript strives to establish a deeper understanding of the influence that the utilization of phosphates as co-solvents entail with special focus on the fluorination degree. It could be shown that the partially fluorinated phosphate offers the best cycling results and therefore the lowest trade-off in performance, while a severe improvement in SET could be achieved compared to the reference electrolyte.