The First Lithium-ion Battery with Ionic Liquid Electrolyte Demonstrated in Extreme Environment of Space

A prototype lithium-ion battery with a bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (FSI)-based ionic liquid electrolyte was developed. The prototype was mounted on a demonstration module of the “Hodoyoshi-3” microsatellite, which was successfully launched on June 20, 2014. Qualification tests for space application, including radiation tolerance and vacuum tests, revealed negligible degradation of the ionic liquid-based lithium-ion battery (IL-LIB) cell. According to the flight data, the IL-LIB cell can exist stably in an ultra-high vacuum environment despite its thin and flexible pouch casing without any rigid anti-vacuum reinforcements. Furthermore, the power unit showed the same charge–discharge performance as that predicted by the charge–discharge behavior of an identical cell on the ground, suggesting that the IL-LIB cell maintains performance in high vacuum a microgravity environment. These results prove that LIB cells with FSI-based ionic liquids can be used as a power source for space applications.