In-Situ Constructing A Heterogeneous Layer on Lithium Metal Anodes for Dendrite-Free Lithium Deposition and High Li-ion Flux.

Abstract

Constructing efficient artificial surface electrolyte interface (SEI) film is extremely vital for the practical application of lithium metal batteries. Herein, a dense artificial SEI film, in which lithiophilic Zn/LixZny are uniformly but nonconsecutively dispersed in the consecutive Li+-conductors of LixSiOy, Li2O and LiOH, is constructed via the in-situ reaction of layered zinc silicate nanosheets and Li. The consecutive Li+-conductors can promote the desolvation process of solvated-Li+ and regulate the transfer of lithium ions. The nonconsecutive lithiophilic metals are polarized by the internal electric field to boost the transfer of lithium ions, and lower the nucleation barrier. Therefore, a low polarization of ~50 mV for 750 h at 2.0 mA cm-2 in symmetric cells, and a high capacity retention of 99.2% in full cells with a high LFP areal loading of ~13 mg cm-2 are achieved. This work offers new sights to develop advanced alkali metal anodes for efficient energy storage.