HYBRID CELL CONSTRUCTION FOR IMPROVED PERFORMANCE

1 . A hybrid electrochemical cell comprising:

a spiral electrode structure;

an electrolyte; and

a pouch-type package for said spiral electrode structure and electrolyte.

2 . The electrochemical cell of claim 1 , wherein said spiral electrode structure comprises:

a cathode;

an anode; and

a separator, wherein said cathode, anode and separator are spirally wound with respect to one another.

3 . The electrochemical cell of claim 2 , wherein:

the cathode is a flexible band;

the anode is a flexible band; and

the separator is a flexible band, wherein said cathode and anode with the separator therebetween are spirally wound together.

4 . The electrochemical cell of claim 2 wherein the spirally wound cathode, anode and separator are in a generally cylindrical shape.

5 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , wherein said electrochemical cell exhibits a specific energy of at least about 600 Wh/kg.

6 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , further comprising a metal grid outside the pouch-type package to maintain a desired shape.

7 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 wherein said cell is a primary cell.

8 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 wherein said cell is a secondary cell.

9 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , where cathode materials for the cell are selected from the group consisting of:

manganese dioxide; and

iron sulfide; and

carbon fluoride; and

cobalt oxide; and

iron phosphate; and

combinations thereof.

10 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , wherein the anode material is selected from the group consisting of:

lithium; and

lithium alloy; and

sodium; and

magnesium; and

graphite; and

carbon/silicon composites.

11 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , wherein the electrolyte comprises a nonaqueous solution including a lithium salt and a solvent.

12 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 11 , wherein the nonaqueous electrolyte solution comprises lithium salts selected from the group consisting of: LiAsF 6 , LiPF 6 , LiBF 4 , LiClO 4 , LiI, LiBr, LiAlCl 4 , Li(CF 3 SO 3 ), LiN(CF 3 SO 2 ) 2 , LiB(C 2 O 4 ) 2 and LiB(C 6 H 4 O 2 ) 2 .

13 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 12 , wherein the concentration of the lithium salt in the electrolyte is within a range from about 0.1 to about 1.5 moles per liter.

14 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 11 , wherein the nonaqueous electrolyte solution comprises solvent in a mixture of organic chemicals at least one of which is selected from the group consisting of: carbonate, nitrile, phosphate, ethylene carbonate, propylene carbonate, 1,2-Dimethoxyethane, tetrahydrofuran, 1,3-dioxolane, ethyl methyl carbonate, butylene carbonate, dimethyl carbonate, diethyl carbonate, gamma-butyrolactone, acetonitrile, triethylphosphate and tri methyl phosphate.

15 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 2 , wherein the separator includes a laminated structure of polypropylene and polyethylene.

16 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , wherein the pouch-type package includes an aluminum laminated plastic pouch.

17 . The electrochemical cell according to claim 1 , wherein the capacity and specific energy of the said cell are the function of the size of the cell.

18 . A method of assembling a hybrid lithium primary electrochemical cell comprising:

winding a cathode, a separator, and an anode together;

placing the spirally winding cathode, separator, and anode into a pouch, with electrodes connected to the anode and cathode extending out of the pouch;

filling the pouch with an electrolyte; and

sealing the pouch, with the electrodes extending from the pouch.

19 . The method according to 18 , further comprising placing the pouch inside a metal grid to maintain a desired shape.

20 . The method according to claim 18 , wherein winding the cathode, the separator, and the anode together includes rolling them as in a jellyroll configuration.