Eco‐Friendly Aqueous Polymeric Binders for High‐Performance Graphite Anodes: Structure–Property Insights for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

ABSTRACT Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVdF) is commonly used as a binder material in the preparation of anode or cathode electrode slurries for commercial Li‐ion batteries (LIBs). High‐cost PVdF binder generally requires the use of toxic and environmentally unfriendly N ‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidone (NMP) as a solvent for dissolution. Transitioning to electrode synthesis with low‐cost and nontoxic aqueous binders provides a breakthrough toward achieving fully sustainable and environmentally friendly LIBs. Considering these considerations, graphite anodes with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), carboxymethyl cellulose/styrene‐butadiene rubber (CMC/SBR), and polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) as novel water‐soluble binders are manufactured, analysed, and compared with graphite anode with the conventional PVdF binder. To comprehensively evaluate the performance of the relevant binders, the synthesized electrodes undergo various electrochemical analyses and material characterization techniques. Electrochemical analyses demonstrated that the graphite anode electrode with PVA binder delivered the highest initial discharge capacity of 412 mAh/g with a Coulombic efficiency of 91% and the highest discharge capacity of 359 mAh/g after 200 cycles at 70 mA/g with superior capacity retention and rate performance of 292 mAh/g at 700 mA/g. These results highlight the potential of PVA to improve electrode performance, making it a functional and eco‐friendly water‐soluble binder option for LIBs.