Porous MgO pompons as a binder for the molten electrolyte applied in thermal batteries

In this paper, porous MgO pompons as the binder for thermal battery were prepared by a hydrothermal method and a followed sintering process. The composition, morphology, and pore size distribution of the prepared sample, mixing method of binder and electrolyte, and the electrochemical performances of the corresponding single thermal cell were characterized and compared in detail. The results show that the prepared porous MgO pompons show an average pore size of 0.2063 μm. Compared with stirring mixing, mixing the binder and electrolyte by using the liquid nitrogen method is a better way to prepare the electrolyte and binder (EB) mixture, and uniform distribution of the electrolyte on the surface of porous MgO pompons is achieved. The obtained porous MgO pompons show a significant better ability to immobilize the binary LiCl-KCl electrolyte than commercially available MgO powder. Consequently, the discharge capacity and conductivity of the corresponding battery are also greater, 363.57 mAh·g−1 and 0.976 S·cm−1 respectively. The conclusions show that porous MgO pompons are a promising binder material for thermal batteries.