Non-polar ether-based electrolyte solutions for stable high-voltage non-aqueous lithium metal batteries.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 36797246.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-023-36647-1 and PMC identifier 9935899.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The electrochemical instability of ether-based electrolyte solutions hinders their practical applications in high-voltage Li metal batteries. To circumvent this issue, here, we propose a dilution strategy to lose the Li<sup>+</sup>/solvent interaction and use the dilute non-aqueous electrolyte solution in high-voltage lithium metal batteries. We demonstrate that in a non-polar dipropyl ether (DPE)-based electrolyte solution with lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl) imide salt, the decomposition order of solvated species can be adjusted to promote the Li<sup>+</sup>/salt-derived anion clusters decomposition over free ether solvent molecules. This selective mechanism favors the formation of a robust cathode electrolyte interphase (CEI) and a solvent-deficient electric double-layer structure at the positive electrode interface. When the DPE-based electrolyte is tested in combination with a Li metal negative electrode (50 μm thick) and a LiNi<sub>0.8</sub>Co<sub>0.1</sub>Mn<sub>0.1</sub>O<sub>2</sub>-based positive electrode (3.3 mAh/cm<sup>2</sup>) in pouch cell configuration at 25 °C, a specific discharge capacity retention of about 74% after 150 cycles (0.33 and 1 mA/cm<sup>2</sup> charge and discharge, respectively) is obtained.