Activity Report of Open Application Course vol.57
Japan-China Collaborative Research Program on Performance Improvement of Lithium Rechargeable Battery
Report from Tokyo Metropolitan University
Two members, Mr. Ma Furui (Graduate student) and Mr. JIN Yongcheng (Faculty member), enrolled at Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy & Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, stayed at Kanemura Laboratory of Tokyo Metropolitan University, and conducted collaborative research on the performance improvement of lithium rechargeable batteries on a schedule from February 26 to March 7, 2018 for a period of 10 days.
In the first half of the program, they were engaged in practical training in synthesizing ceramic electrolyte and in its molding method, and towards the realization of a new battery called all-solid battery using lithium ion conductive ceramic electrolyte. Mr. Ma Furui is a doctoral student majoring in ceramic chemistry and has done research focusing on basic fields such as materials research. He was extremely thankful to be able to learn about new concepts and techniques, by gaining exposure to the fields close to practical use of batteries during his stay. The members of the executing agency also brought opinions and questions at different angles than usual, and it became a good exchange that was very exciting for both of them.
In the second half of the program, they tried to evaluate the positive-electrode material of lithium rechargeable batteries, by using a method of evaluating the characteristics of a single particle called single particle measurement. It was necessary to perform all the operations inside the glove box filled with inert gas, because the measurement should be made by excluding the effects of moisture and oxygen in the atmosphere. This was very tough. Delicate work had to be done using thick gloves, and hence, they struggled hard to get accustomed, continued their challenge again and again, and finally they could evaluate the electrochemical properties of the target material. Congratulations Mr. Ma Furui!
During the interim period of research, exchanges were made not only on the research aspects, but also on cultural aspects, such as touring inside the campus, sightseeing in Tokyo, and holding of a welcome party. They also got a chance to challenge the “Kusaya” * produced in Hachijojima. Mr. Ma seemed to like it very much, but Mr. Kim did not like it. A fermented/stinky tofu with a similar flavor is available in China, and they wanted to challenge it when we visit China.
* Kusaya is a Japanese style salted-dried and fermented fish. It has a pungent smell.
On the occasion of this program, it was possible to communicate very closely on the research and cultural aspects.
In the future, they have decided to further deepen collaboration and to work on collaborative research, and deeply appreciated the SAKURA Exchange program in science for providing such a valuable opportunity.