Conditions of observation of electrode masses in environmental scanning electron microscope

When an electrochemical battery operates, oxides and sulphides are produced on the interface between the electrode mass and collector. This causes a short battery life and less efficiency. For the study of these phenomena the observation of the structure of the surface of the electrode mass in the ESEM was chosen. The electrode mass is operated in a liquid of an electrolyte. When the specimen is observed in the classic scanning electron microscope (SEM), its surface is enormously dried by the vacuum and its state does not correspond to the original state in the battery. Observation in ESEM allows the use of working pressures in the range from tens to thousands of Pa, and the drying of the specimen is suppressed. When the working conditions in the specimen chamber are changed, the quality of given images changes too. The aim of the experiment is to determine optimum conditions for the attainment of a good-quality image of the structure of the electrode mass surface in the ESEM