THE APPLICATION OF ELECTROCHEMISTRY AND ORGANIC CHEMISTRY IN POLYMER SYNTHESIS AND BATTERY ELECTRODE DESIGN

Abstract

The following chapters detail the use of electrochemistry in synthesizing multiblock copolymers from a single solution and the application of organic polymer cathodes as high-rate cathode materials. Chapter two focuses on the development of a cationic polymerization of isobutyl vinyl ether, utilizing an electric stimulus to control polymer initiation, propagation and reversible termination. Chapters three and four pair electrochemically-controlled cationic polymerizations with photocontrolled radical polymerizations and report methods to synthesize block copolymers of vinyl ethers and methyl acrylate. In chapters six through eight, organic polymer cathodes are reported which can tolerate high charge and discharge rates. In chapter nine, a relationship between polymer crystallinity and charge storage mechanism in organic cathodes is proposed, wherein disrupting ordering in the charge storage material results in less diffusion-limited charge storage processes.