In the current rapid development of the new energy industry, the performance improvement of batteries, as the core energy carrier, relies heavily on the coordinated optimization of various key components. Among these, the battery tabs, seemingly tiny components, bear the crucial mission of energy conduction, serving as the core hub for the battery's charging and discharging functions. Their quality directly affects the battery's safety, stability, and lifespan.
Battery tabs are essentially the lead-out devices for the positive and negative terminals of the battery, responsible for transferring electrical energy from the battery's internal components to the external circuitry. In the battery's structural system, one end connects to the battery cell, and the other end interfaces with external connectors, forming a complete current loop. This seemingly simple conduction function places stringent requirements on the tabs' performance. On one hand, they need excellent conductivity to reduce energy loss during current transmission and improve the battery's charging and discharging efficiency; on the other hand, they also need good corrosion resistance and mechanical strength to withstand the complex chemical environment inside the battery and the mechanical impacts during processing and use.
From a material classification perspective, battery tabs are mainly divided into positive and negative tabs. Due to differences in operating environments and conductivity requirements, the materials used for these two types differ. Positive electrode tabs are typically made of aluminum, which is lightweight, has excellent conductivity, and is oxidation-resistant, making it well-suited to the electrochemical environment of the positive electrode. Negative electrode tabs are mostly made of copper, as copper has higher conductivity than aluminum, effectively reducing contact resistance. However, copper is easily oxidized in air, so some negative electrode tabs are nickel-plated to improve their oxidation resistance and weldability. Furthermore, the material of the tabs is specifically optimized according to the battery's application scenario and performance requirements to meet the needs of different fields.
As new energy batteries develop towards higher energy density and higher power density, the technological development of battery tabs is also constantly breaking through. Traditional tabs are prone to overheating and aging under high-current charge and discharge scenarios, hindering the improvement of battery performance. Therefore, the industry is constantly exploring new tab structures and materials, such as using multi-layer composite materials to improve conductivity and corrosion resistance, optimizing tab size and connection methods to reduce contact resistance, and developing integrated tab structures to improve battery space utilization. These technological innovations not only improve the performance of the tabs themselves but also drive the upgrading and development of the entire battery industry.
In the future, with further breakthroughs in battery technology, electrodes will develop towards being thinner, more efficient, and more reliable, continuing to play a key role in the field of energy conduction and providing solid support for the high-quality development of the new energy industry.
