Design of a Bioinspired Robust Three-Dimensional Cross-Linked Polymer Binder for High-Performance Li-Ion Battery Applications.

Si has the highest theoretical capacity (4200 mA h g) among conventional anode materials, such as graphite (372 mA h g), but its large volume expansion leads to deterioration of the battery performance. To overcome this problem (issue), we investigated the use of polysaccharide-based 3D cross-linked network binders for Si anodes, in which the polysaccharide formed an effective 3D cross-linked network around Si particles via cross-linking of polysaccharide with citric acid (CA). Sodium alginate (SA), a natural polysaccharide extracted from brown algae, is a suitable binder material for Si anodes because its abundant hydroxyl (-OH) and carboxyl (-COOH) groups form hydrogen and covalent bonds with the -OH groups present on the Si surface.