Facile construction of a water-defendable Li anode protection enables rechargeable Li-O2 battery operating in humid atmosphere

Abstract

The rechargeable Li-O2 battery endowed with high theoretical specific energy density has sparked intense research interest as a promising energy storage system. However, the intrinsic high activity of Li anode, especially to moisture, usually leads to inferior electrochemical performance of Li-O2 battery in humid environments, hindering its widespread application. To settle the trouble of poor moisture tolerance, fabricating a water-proof layer on the Li-metal anode could be an effective tactic. Herein, a facile strategy for constructing an ibuprofen-based protective layer on the Li anode has been proposed to realize highly rechargeable Li-O2 battery in humid atmosphere. Due to the in-situ reaction between ibuprofen reagent and metallic Li, the protective layer with a thickness of ∼30 µm has been uniformly deposited on the surface of Li anode. Particularly, the protective layer, consisting of a large amount of hydrophobic alkyl group and benzene ring, can significantly resist water ingress and enhance the electrochemical stability of Li anode. As a result, the Li-O2 battery based on the protected Li anode achieves a long cycle life of 210 h (21 cycles at 1000 mAh/g, 200 mA/g) in highly moist atmosphere with relative humidity (RH) of 68%. This convenient and efficient strategy offers novel design concept of water-resistant metal anode, and paves the way to the promising future prospect for the high-energy Li-O2 battery implementing in the ambient atmosphere.