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Supercritical CO2-enabled dry processing of polymer electrolytes
Nano Research 2026, 19(7): 94908655
Published: 28 May 2026
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The fabrication of polymer-based solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) is often limited by solution-based processing that requires organic solvents and restricts the choice of polymer matrices. Here, we report a solvent-free dry-processing strategy mediated by supercritical CO2. Leveraging its gas-like diffusivity and liquid-like solvation capability, supercritical CO2 enables kinetically favored selective diffusion of lithium salts within poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), initially into amorphous regions followed by gradual permeation into crystalline domains during treatment. This diffusion-driven microstructural evolution leads to a PEO electrolyte with an ionic conductivity of 4.9 × 10−4 S·cm−1, nearly four times higher than its solution-cast counterpart. These findings highlight the role of supercritical CO2 as a mediator of polymer–salt interactions and provide a solvent-free pathway for fabricating polymer electrolytes with tailored crystallinity.

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