Excellent Battery Research Articles

Superionic conducting vacancy-rich β-Li3N electrolyte for stable cycling of all-solid-state lithium metal batteries.

The advancement of all-solid-state lithium metal batteries requires breakthroughs in solid-state electrolytes (SSEs) for the suppression of lithium dendrite growth at high current densities and high capacities (>3 mAh cm-2) and innovation of SSEs in terms of crystal structure, ionic conductivity and rigidness. Here we report a superionic conducting, highly lithium-compatible and air-stable vacancy-rich β-Li3N SSE. This vacancy-rich β-Li3N SSE shows a high ionic conductivity of 2.14 × 10-3 S cm-1 at 25 °C and surpasses almost all the reported nitride-based SSEs. A Li- and N-vacancy-mediated fast lithium-ion migration mechanism is unravelled regarding vacancy-triggered reduced activation energy and increased mobile lithium-ion population. All-solid-state lithium symmetric cells using vacancy-rich β-Li3N achieve breakthroughs in high critical current densities up to 45 mA cm-2 and high capacities up to 7.5 mAh cm-2, and ultra-stable lithium stripping and plating processes over 2,000 cycles. The high lithium compatibility mechanism of vacancy-rich β-Li3N is unveiled as intrinsic stability to lithium metal. In addition, β-Li3N possesses excellent air stability through the formation of protection surfaces. All-solid-state lithium metal batteries using the vacancy-rich β-Li3N as SSE interlayers and lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) and Ni-rich LiNi0.83Co0.11Mn0.06O2 (NCM83) cathodes exhibit excellent battery performance. Extremely stable cycling performance is demonstrated with high capacity retentions of 82.05% with 95.2 mAh g-1 over 5,000 cycles at 1.0 C for LCO and 92.5% with 153.6 mAh g-1 over 3,500 cycles at 1.0 C for NCM83. Utilizing the vacancy-rich β-Li3N SSE and NCM83 cathodes, the all-solid-state lithium metal batteries successfully accomplished mild rapid charge and discharge rates up to 5.0 C, retaining 60.47% of the capacity. Notably, these batteries exhibited a high areal capacity, registering approximately 5.0 mAh cm-2 for the compact pellet-type cells and around 2.2 mAh cm-2 for the all-solid-state lithium metal pouch cells.

Hollow spherical Na3.95Fe2.95V0.05(PO4)2P2O7 suppressing inactive Maricite-NaFePO4 with ultrahigh dynamics performance

sodium ion batteries are considered as excellent energy storage battery materials with the characteristic of low cost and renewability. As a critical component of sodium-ion energy storage batteries, cathode materials have attracted great attention from scientists around the world. Recently, Na4Fe3(PO4)2P2O7 (NFPP) which offer a theoretical capacity of 129 mAh g−1 has garnered widespread attention. However, the formation of inactive maricite NaFePO4 (NFP) and low capacity Na2FeP2O7 (Na2FPO) during the synthesis process restricts the capacity utilization, while poor conductivity further limits its electrochemical performance. To address these issues, here, Na3.95Fe2.95V0.05(PO4)2P2O7/C (V0.05-NFPP/C) composite material was synthesized and assembled into cell for testing. A capacity of 114 mAh g−1 was given at 0.1 C and rate performance also represent 90 mAh g−1 at 10 C. Vanadium-ion improves the dynamic performance by inhibiting maricite NFP and participating in electrochemical reactions. Furthermore, sodium-ion storage mechanism of V0.05-NFPP/C was revealed by ex-situ XRD patterns with the assistance of first-principles calculations, and the phase transformation mechanism during the sintering process was explored.

Boosting OER activity of Fe-N Moieties via Ni induced d-Orbital Tailoring for durable rechargeable Zn-Air batteries

Fe-N-C-based catalysts are considered the most promising Pt candidates due to their high oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) activity and low cost, whereas their oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance is extremely poor due to the sluggish O-O coupling process, which hampers the practical application of rechargeable zinc-air batteries. Here, we in situ infiltrate Ni and Fe ions into metal triazolidine (MET)-derived N-doped porous carbon via a microporous confinement-pyrolysis strategy to enhance the OER activity of the Fe-N sites. The introduction of Ni induced the electronic delocalization of Fe atoms at the Fe-N center, which lowered the adsorption energy barriers for the decisive velocity step (O*→OOH*), thus accelerating the O-O bond coupling and OER kinetics. In addition, the preferential formation of NiOOH at high OER potentials ensures the catalytic stability of zinc-air batteries by trapping Fe ions escaping from carbon corrosion to form FeOOH. The optimized catalyst (FeNi-NC) has an overpotential of only 351 mV at a current density of 50 mA cm−2 under alkaline conditions. More importantly, the assembled ZABs can be stably charged and discharged for more than 500 h at 10 mA cm−2, demonstrating excellent battery charging and discharging stability. This work shows the great potential of strong electronic interactions between polymetals to improve Fe-N-C catalysts.

High-performance SPEEK membrane with polydopamine-bridged PTFE nanoparticles for vanadium redox flow batteries

With the growing demand of energy storage techniques in carbon-neutral environments, vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) have emerged as outstanding systems for long-duration energy storage. Developing high-performance ion exchange membrane is essential for broad deployment of RFBs. In this work, a SPEEK/PTFE membrane is designed by incorporating polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) nanoparticles into sulfonated poly (ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) membrane by bio-inspired polydopamine (PDA) bridge. PDA combines SPEEK membrane and hydrophobic PTFE nanoparticle tightly by its abundant functional groups. The ion selectivity of optimal SPEEK/PTFE-0.5 % membrane is 8.9 times greater than that of Nafion 115. Remarkably, VRFB with optimal SPEEK/PTFE-0.5 % membrane exhibits excellent battery performances including impressive columbic efficiency (CE, 99.5 %) and energy efficiency (EE, 86.3 %) at 100 mA cm−2 surpassing Nafion 115 (CE, 95.8 %; EE, 83.4 %). Besides, VRFB employing SPEEK/PTFE-0.5 % membrane demonstrates excellent cycling stability, with higher capacity retention (71.4 % after 300 cycles) compared to Nafion 115, indicating its capability of extended operation. This work illustrates that the design of PDA bridge in composite membrane is a useful approach for developing high-performance membranes in RFBs.

Customizing Pore Structure and Lithiophilic Sites Dual-Gradient Free-Standing 3D Lithium-Based Anode to Enable Excellent Lithium Metal Batteries.

Developing 3D hosts is one of the most promising strategies for putting forward the practical application of lithium(Li)-based anodes. However, the concentration polarization and uniform electric field of the traditional 3D hosts result in undesirable "top growth" of Li, reduced space utilization, and obnoxious dendrites. Herein, a novel dual-gradient 3D host (GDPL-3DH) simultaneously possessing gradient-distributed pore structure and lithiophilic sites is constructed by an electrospinning route. Under the synergistic effect of the gradient-distributed pore and lithiophilic sites, the GDPL-3DH exhibits the gradient-increased electrical conductivity from top to bottom. Also, Li is preferentially and uniformly deposited at the bottom of the GDPL-3DH with a typical "bottom-top" mode confirmed by the optical and SEM images, without Li dendrites. Consequently, an ultra-long lifespan of 5250h of a symmetrical cell at 2mA cm-2 with a fixed capacity of 2 mAh cm-2 is achieved. Also, the full cells based on the LiFePO4, S/C, and LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathodes all exhibit excellent performances. Specifically, the LiFePO4-based cell maintains a high capacity of 136.8 mAh g-1 after 700 cycles at 1C (1C = 170mA g-1) with 94.7% capacity retention. The novel dual-gradient strategy broadens the perspective of regulating the mechanism of lithium deposition.

A CRITIC-CODAS Approach for Ranking WirelessCommunication Technologies in Precision Agriculture: Application to Irrigation System

This study evaluates and ranks wireless communication technologies for agricultural irrigation systems using the CRITIC-CODAS multi-criteria decision-making method. Technologies including WSN, LPWAN, LoRa, 5G, IoT, and NB-IoT are compared based on range, power consumption, data rate, coverage, latency, battery life, and device density. The CRITIC method is used to objectively determine criteria weights, with data rate, latency, and battery life emerging as the most important factors. 5G ranks highest with its superior data rate and device density, but its high-power needs may limit suitability for remote agriculture. IoT offers a balanced option across multiple criteria, while WSN excels in power efficiency and battery life. LPWAN, LoRa, and NB-IoT provide excellent range and battery life for wide-area, low-power applications despite lower data rates. The analysis provides a framework for stakeholders to select appropriate technologies based on specific agricultural requirements. Matching wireless technologies to irrigation needs can enhance agricultural sustainability and productivity. Further research could explore technology combinations, cost factors, and real-world testing. This systematic evaluation approach can be extended to other smart agriculture applications to optimize technology adoption.

A ZIF-8-enhanced PVDF/PEO blending polymer gel membrane for quasi-solid-state Na-S batteries with long cycling lifespan

Ambient-temperature sodium-sulfur (Na-S) battery with high energy density and low cost has been considered as the promising energy density system. However, its commercial application is limited by the rapid capacity decay of the sulfur electrode and the instability of sodium dendrites with the safety issues. Herein, a ZIF-8 enhanced PVDF/PEO blending polymer gel membrane (PPZ) is reported for stable and safe quasi-solid-state Na-S battery with sulfurized polyacrylonitrile (SPAN) cathode and Na metal anode. The optimized gel polymer membrane with the dense framework exhibited the rapid Na+ migration, superior mechanical property with the tensile strength of 16.5 MPa and the elongation-at-break of 171 %, which is conductive to regulate the Na+ ion flux with the uniform Na plating and prevent the dendritic growth. The assembled symmetric Na/PPZ-GPE/Na cell delivered the stable cycling for 250 h with almost constant voltage hysteresis of 150 mV. Benefited from the superior interfacial stability between PPZ-GPE and Na as well as PPZ-GPE and SPAN, the SPAN/PPZ-GPE/Na cell exhibited the high capacity of 1585.4 mA h g−1 with the capacity retain of 97 % of third cycle after 465 cycles. This work offers exemplary electrolyte design that concurrently and effectively tackles the problems in Na-S battery and presents an excellent quasi-solid sodium-sulfur battery with the high capacity and long cycling.

Superhydrophobic Co/Fe sulfide nanoparticles and single-atoms doped carbon nanosheets composite air cathode for high-performance zinc-air batteries

Development of a high-performance bifunctional catalyst is essential for the actual implementation of zinc-air batteries in practical applications. Herein, a bifunctional cathode of Co3S4/FeS heterogeneous nanoparticles embedded in Co/Fe single-atom-loaded nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets is designed. Cobalt-iron sulfides and single atomic sites with Co-N4/Fe-N4 configurations are confirmed to coexist on the carbon matrix by EXAFS spectroscopy. 3D self-supported super-hydrophobic multiphase composite cathode provides abundant active sites and facilitates gas–liquid-solid three-phase interface reactions, resulting in excellent electrocatalytic activity and batteries performance, i.e., an OER overpotential (η10) of 260 mV, a half-wave potential (E1/2) of 0.872 V for ORR, a ΔE of 0.618 V, and a discharge power density of 170 mW cm−2, a specific capacity of 816.3 mAh g−1. DFT analysis shows multiphase coupling of sulfide heterojunction through single-atomic metal doped carbon nanosheets reduces offset on center of electronic density of states before and after oxygen adsorption, and spin density of adsorbed oxygen with same spin orientation, leading to weakened charge/spin interactions between adsorbed oxygen and substrate, and a lowered oxygen adsorption energy to accelerate OER/ORR.

Mixed valence Mo2C-MoC/C catalyst enhances polysulfides conversion kinetics in lithium–sulfur batteries

Lithium-sulfur batteries have received extensive attention in the field of electrochemical energy storage systems due to their extremely high theoretical energy density (2600 Wh·kg−1) and low cost. However, poor electrical conductivity, shuttle effect, and volume expansion effect still need to be addressed. Here, we controllably synthesized hollow spherical Mo2C-MoC/C structure as the cathode material for lithium-sulfur batteries. Through high-temperature calcination, the synthesis of graphitized reticular carbon matrix and the loading of Mo2C and MoC nanoparticles with mixed valence of Mo2+ and Mo3+ were simultaneously achieved. The two synergistically improved the electronic conductivity and ensured excellent battery performance. From the experimental results, Mo2C-MoC/C structure strongly adsorbed polysulfides and promoted the conversion of polysulfides to lithium sulfide, accelerating the reaction kinetics and enhancing the battery performance. The initial discharge specific capacity of Mo2C-MoC/C electrode with 57.12 wt% sulfur content was 870.4 mAh·g−1 at 0.2 C, and remained at 770.7 mAh·g−1 at 0.5 C, which was significantly better than that of Mo2C/C/S. The rational design of the Mo2C-MoC/C structure in this study can be generalized to the advanced electrode materials of other Mo-based nanomaterials.

Ionic liquid-based self-healing gel electrolyte for high-performance lithium metal batteries

The gel electrolytes with self-healing function are being considered as promising replacement for traditional liquid electrolytes in lithium metal batteries due to their excellent battery safety, high energy density and minimum electrolyte damage. However, balancing self-healing, conductivity and mechanical properties remains a challenge for their practical application. Herein, a new ion liquid-based self-healing gel polymer electrolyte (IL-SHGPE) is introduced. The electrolyte was synthesized via UV-induced cross-linking of a polymer containing quadruple hydrogen bond units and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (BMIM-TFSI) ion liquid. The resultant IL-SHGPE demonstrates exceptional self-healing ability (with 95% healing efficiency within 30 min), excellent thermal stability over a wide temperature range up to 410 °C. It also exhibits impressive mechanical strength with 41.3% elongation and 1.9 MPa tensile stress, room temperature ionic conductivity of 1.29 × 10−3 S/cm, and a wide electrochemical stability window of 5.18V (vs Li/Li+). Lithium metal batteries with this electrolyte showed an initial discharge capacity of 139 mAh g−1 at 1C rate, and a capacity retention of 88.3% after 200 cycles. Therefore, this work provides a significant exploration for balancing self-healing ability, mechanical attributes, and electrochemical performance of lithium batteries, and thus contributing valuable insights towards the development of high-performance self-healing gel electrolytes for lithium metal batteries.

A numerical study of a novel centrally bifurcated mini-channel liquid cooling plate for enhanced heat transfer characteristics

Temperature rise and poor temperature consistency of lithium-ion batteries due to heat accumulation affect the safe application of batteries. Mini-channel structured liquid cooling plates (LCP) with excellent battery thermal management effects is investigated. In order to obtain a better temperature management effect and temperature consistency at lower pressure drops, a double-layer mini-channel structure LCP bifurcated from the center to the periphery is innovatively designed. Using the simulation software, the impact of the novel LCP's structural elements on battery thermal management efficiency is studied. According to research, the LCP with a double-inlet and double-outlet arrangement provides the best temperature control while requiring the lowest pressure drop. With a 25.7 Pa pressure drop, the LCP can decrease the maximum temperature and maximum temperature difference of the battery to 38.83 °C and 6.57 °C during discharging at 2C. Subsequently, the effects of main channel width, branch channel structural elements and inlet mass flow rate on the performance of the LCP are investigated. Compared to the structural elements, the inlet mass flow rate has more influence on the effectiveness of battery thermal management. However, when the inlet mass flow rate is increased to more than 0.8 g ·s−1, the influence gets less significant. Compared to the other four structural LCPs, the batteries maximum temperature and maximum temperature differences while discharging at 2C are the lowest at 0.8 g ·s−1 inlet mass flow rate with just 152 Pa pressure drop, 33.64 °C and 6.89 °C, respectively. All of these findings could be help to optimize the structure design of mini-channel liquid cooling plates used to battery thermal management.

A self-adaptive joint optimization framework for marine hybrid energy storage system design considering load fluctuation characteristics

Recently, with the development of new energy technologies, all-electric ships (AESs) with hybrid energy storage system (HESS) are becoming a promising solution to reduce fuel consumption and emissions. However, the high maneuverability of ships during the actual navigation places higher performance requirements on the HESS, which presents a nonlinear and multi-objective challenge for the HESS design. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the coupling between HESS sizing and energy management strategy (EMS). In this paper, a self-adaptive joint optimization framework (SJOF) for marine HESS design considering load fluctuation characteristics is proposed, which can find the optimal decision solution with excellent system economic and battery life performance for AES HESS design. Based on the rain flow counting (RFC) method, a multi-objective joint optimization method considering life cycle cost (LCC) and battery degradation index (BDI) is introduced into SJOF. Besides, a novel EMS including the self-adaptive segmentation mechanism (SSM) and power allocation is proposed, which can achieve the most efficient energy scheduling.

Heteroatom surface engineering with distinct doping ways and valence state regulation: Boosting electrocatalysis performance of Ni-doped MoS2/rGO host for excellent lithium sulfur batteries

Sulfur host materials are crucial to the electrochemical performances of lithium sulfur batteries (LSBs). Two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials with close atomic thickness and large specific surface area are considered as excellent sulfur hosts in lithium sulfur batteries due to their extraordinary physical properties and special structures, which play a key role in improving the redox reaction kinetics of sulfur/Li2S. The heteroatom doping, which is usually applied in surface engineering, can not only adjust surface coordination environment but also form surface functional groups. Herein, the surface structures and properties of 2D Ni-doped MoS2/rGO composite are regulated via two surface engineering strategies. One is that nickel atoms are doped into 2D MoS2 nanosheets by two distinct hydrothermal techniques, which would result in notable differences of surface heteroatom content, and another is that the valence state of surface heteroatom nickel is changed by the thermal reduction technology. The content and valence state of surface heteroatom nickel can significantly influence the electrocatalysis activities of host materials during the redox reaction processes of sulfur/Li2S, which would substantially alter the electrochemical performances of LSBs. When the S@3%Ni-MoS2/rGO-IIRe is used as sulfur host, the lithium‑sulfur cell has an initial discharge capacity of 936.4 mA h g−1 and a low capacity attenuation of only 0.027 % each cycle with the high capacity of 819.7 mA h g−1 after 450 cycles at 1C, exhibiting an excellent coulombic efficiency and outstanding cycle stability. This study would provide some inspiration for improving the electrochemical performance of advanced lithium‑sulfur batteries through the rational regulation of surface atomic structures and electronic states of sulfur hosts.

Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur co-doped carbon nanotubes/melamine foam composite electrode for high-performance vanadium redox flow battery

The high cost and complex modification process of carbon felt electrodes limits its further popularization in vanadium redox flow batteries (VFBs). By introducing low-cost melamine foam, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur co-doped carbon nanotubes/ melamine foam composite electrode (NPS-CNTs-CMF) is designed and fabricated via immersing melamine foam in a solution containing N, P, and S co-doped CNTs. The integration of modified CNTs significantly enhances the conductivity and hydrophilicity of the electrode. Moreover, the composite electrode also demonstrates outstanding electrocatalytic activity owing to the heteroatom doping that further inspired the electrocatalytic activity of CNTs. Density function theory calculations further uncover that introducing heteroatoms on CNTs not only promotes the adsorption of vanadium ions but also facilitates the electron transfer between vanadium ions and MF substrate. As a result, the battery loading with NPS-CNTs-CMF exhibits excellent battery performance, achieving energy efficiency of 80.12 % at 300 mA cm–2. Additionally, the long-term cycling stability is attained over 200 consecutive charge-discharge cycles at 300 mA cm−2. This study provides a novel melamine foam material with low cost and simple modification, and this new composite structure stimulates the development of high-performance electrodes in VFBs.

Long-Range Uniform Deposition of Ag Nanoseed on Cu Current Collector for High-Performance Lithium Metal Batteries.

Uniform lithium deposition is essential to hinder dendritic growth. Achieving this demands even seed material distribution across the electrode, posing challenges in correlating the electrode's surface structure with the uniformity of seed material distribution. In this study, the effect of periodic surface and facet orientation on seed distribution is investigated using a model system consisting of a wrinkled copper (Cu)/graphene structure with a [100] facet orientation. A new methodology is developed for uniformly distributed silver (Ag) nanoparticles over a large area by controlling the surface features of Cu substrates. The regularly arranged Ag nanoparticles, with a diameter of 26.4nm, are fabricated by controlling the Cu surface condition as [100]-oriented wrinkled Cu. The wrinkled Cu guides a deposition site for spherical Ag nanoparticles, the [100] facet determines the Ag morphology, and the presence of graphene leads to spacings of Ag seeds. This patterned surface and high lithiophilicity, with homogeneously distributed Ag nanoparticles, lead to uniform Li+ flux and reduced nucleation energy barrier, resulting in excellent battery performance. The electrochemical measurements exhibit improved cyclic stability over 260 cycles at 0.5mAcm-2 and 100 cycles at 1.0mAcm-2 and enhanced kinetics even under a high current density of 5.0mAcm-2.

Synthesis and characterization of BxPU-Liy: A novel polyurethane-based solid electrolyte with disrupted crystallinity for enhanced ion transport

In response to the demand for high-performance and safe batteries in the field of energy storage, a novel polyurethane-based solid electrolyte system, BxPU-Liy, has been developed. Crystallinity had been effectively reduced by incorporating 1,1′-binaphthol with a special molecular structure leading enhanced ion migration. Among that, B5PU-Li20 demonstrates good mechanical properties and thermal stability, with an ionic conductivity of 3.28 × 10-5 S cm−1 at room temperature, increasing to 2.0 × 10-4 S cm−1 at 40 °C. Additionally, this material exhibits excellent electrochemical performance and battery cycling capabilities, offering a new direction for the development of high-performance battery technology, with potential applications in portable electronic devices, electric vehicles, and large-scale energy storage systems.

Achieving Electric Aviation with Advanced Battery Technology and Nanomaterials

With the continuous development of industry, environmental problems continue to worsen, of which the environmental problems caused by the traditional aviation industry are particularly serious, but there are many problems with electric aircraft that have not been solved. Therefore, this paper explores the realization of electric aviation by using advanced battery technology and nanomaterials. The study found that there are a variety of advanced battery technologies and nanomaterials that contribute to the realization of electric aviation, among which Multi-walled carbon nanotubes(MWCNT)/ graphene-based composite phase change material technology has considerable potential. It has excellent battery thermal management performance and excellent high-power density. However, MWCNT/ graphene-based composite phase change material technology also has shortcomings at present, such as the production process is complex and difficult to mass produce. Although there are still many challenges, this paper believes that these challenges will be solved to enable electric aviation using advanced battery technology and nanomaterials.

Marcasite/pyrite nanocomposites confined in N,S-doped carbon nanoboxes for boosted alkali metal ion storage.

FeS2 is a promising electrode material for alkali metal ion storage due to its high theoretical capacity. However, it still faces critical issues such as suboptimal rate and cycling performances owing to sluggish charge transport and significant volume variations. Herein, we constructed FeS2 (m-FeS2) and pyrite FeS2 (p-FeS2) nanocomposites embedded in N,S-doped carbon nanoboxes (m/p-FeS2@NSCN) to conquer such challenges. The microstructure design of nanoboxes effectively alleviates the stress caused by the volume expansion of FeS2 during lithiation processes, thereby improving the cycling stability of the FeS2 electrode. The marcasite/pyrite compositing design further increases the electronic conductivity of FeS2 and optimizes ion migration. As expected, the target m/p-FeS2@NSCN exhibits improved rate capability (595.5 mA h g-1 at 5.0 A g-1) and robust cycling stability (500 cycles without significant capacity decay at 0.1 A g-1) in lithium-ion batteries. Furthermore, m/p-FeS2@NSCN also shows excellent battery performances and potential application prospects in the field of sodium-ion batteries. It achieves a capacity of 355 mA h g-1 at 10.0 A g-1 and sustains 800 cycles without noticeable capacity decay at 0.5 A g-1. This work offers valuable guidance for rationally designing high-performance energy storage materials for alkali metal ion storage.

Toward High-Quality Sulfide Solid Electrolytes: A Liquid-Phase Approach Featured with an Interparticle Coupled Unification Effect.

Sulfide solid electrolytes (SSEs) are highly wanted for solid-state batteries (SSBs). While their liquid-phase synthesis is advantageous over their solid-phase strategy in scalable production, it confronts other challenges, such as low-purity products, user-unfriendly solvents, energy-inefficient solvent removal, and unsatisfactory performance. This article demonstrates that a suspension-based solvothermal method using single oxygen-free solvents can solve those problems. Experimental observations and theoretical calculations together show that the basic function of suspension-treatment is "interparticle-coupled unification", that is, even individually insoluble solid precursors can mutually adsorb and amalgamate to generate uniform composites in nonpolar solvents. This anti-intuitive concept is established when investigating the origins of impurities in SSEs electrolytes made by the conventional tetrahydrofuran-ethanol method and then searching for new solvents. Its generality is supported by four eligible alkane solvents and four types of SSEs. The electrochemical assessments on the former three SSEs show that they are competitive with their counterparts in the literature. Moreover, the synthesized SSEs presents excellent battery performance, showing great potential for practical applications.

Electrochemical Characterization of Artificial Solid Electrolyte Interphase Developed on Graphite Via ALD

During formation of Li-ion batteries, a ‘natural’ solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) is formed at the anode side by decomposition products of the electrolyte. The properties of the SEI are extremely decisive for the overall battery properties, such as rate capability and cycling stability. However, the SEI formation consumes Li, leading to so called ‘formation losses’ that can make up to 15% of the theoretical energy density of the battery. Several approaches have been presented to overcome formation losses while preserving excellent overall battery properties. Particularly, electrochemical prelithiation and the application of artificial SEIs prior cell assembly are considered to effectively reduced formation losses while improving the interfacial charge transfer properties and increasing cycling stability.Herein, the authors present an innovative approach of applying a multifunctional artificial SEI on anode material powders via consecutive atomic layer deposition (ALD) cycles. As a model system, graphite powder has been chosen to be modified and characterized.The resulting electrodes show substantially improved electrochemical performance in half cells and full cells, regarding initial capacity loss, CE and cycling stability. Furthermore, model electrodes consisting of a single layer of graphite particles were manufactured, which exclude the effects of a typical composite electrode and therefore reveal the intrinsic properties of the active material. Using this approach, the interfacial kinetics and the rate capability are investigated comparatively between pristine and ALD coated electrodes, revealing the impact of the artificial SEI on the materials level.