680. Impact of the Anion Structure on Coordination and Dynamics in a Localized High-Concentration Battery Electrolyte

Anne Hockmann, Peng Yan, Diddo Diddens, Isidora Cekic-Laskovic, Monika Schönhoff, JPhysChemB, (2025), DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.5c01566

Localized high-concentration electrolytes (LHCEs) are based on the immiscibility of a concentrated salt phase and a diluent phase, creating an internal interface. Here, we study LHCEs based on lithium bis- (fluorosulfonyl)imide or lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide as the conducting salt, 1,2-dimethoxyethane as the solvent, and 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl- 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl ether (TTE) as the diluent. With increasing dilution, trends of dynamic properties such as ionic conductivity and self-diffusion strongly depend on the anion structure. By analyzing ion coordinations by NMR and Raman spectroscopy, we attributed this to a different interfacial affinity of the anions: TFSI anions are more likely than FSI anions to interact with the diluent molecules. This stabilizes the TTE| conducting salt interface, causing a less compact and more mobile conducting salt-rich phase. Furthermore, it leads to a higher degree of ion dissociation, which explains the enhanced molar ionic conductivity found upon dilution of TFSI-based LHCEs, as opposed to FSI-based LHCEs. These differences are most probably due to the larger size and enhanced charge delocalization of the TFSI anion compared to the FSI anion, making the interaction with the uncharged TTE molecule more favorable. Thus, understanding local ion coordinations in different electrolyte formulations plays a crucial role in optimizing transport properties.