Tetrabutylammonium Fluoride as the Electrolyte in Aluminum Cells

This work proposes a novel tetrabutylammonium fluoride (TBAF)-based electrolyte for aluminum (Al) cells, with mixed carbonate as the solvent. The Al foil was immersed in the electrolyte to investigate the hydrogen evolution process. After 40 h, the morphology of the Al surface was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results reveal that the TBAF-based solution would not lead to the passivation of the Al surface. In addition, this work demonstrates that, by using an anhydrous ionic liquid fluoride salt (with a strong nucleophilic fluorinion) as the electrolyte, the Al cell could sustain a high electrode potential without hydrogen evolution. Further evaluation of this electrolyte was carried out by using Al/CuO cells. CuO@Cu nanoplatelets synthesized through a novel hydrothermal method containing two steps, immersion and steaming, were used as the cathode material. The Al/CuO primary cells with the TBAF-02ED electrolyte exhibit a well-defined initial open circuit voltage (OCV) of 1.42 V and a high discharge capacity of 457 mAhg(-1). Utilizing anhydrous ionic liquid fluoride salt electrolyte in Al cells opens a new avenue for the application of Al battery systems.