Breaking the capacity bottleneck of lithium-oxygen batteries through reconceptualizing transport and nucleation kinetics.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 39551831.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-54366-z and PMC identifier 11570598.
- 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 practical capacity of lithium-oxygen batteries falls short of their ultra-high theoretical value. Unfortunately, the fundamental understanding and enhanced design remain lacking, as the issue is complicated by the coupling processes between Li<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> nucleation, growth, and multi-species transport. Herein, we redefine the relationship between the microscale Li<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> behaviors and the macroscopic electrochemical performance, emphasizing the importance of the inherent modulating ability of Li<sup>+</sup> ions through a synergy of visualization techniques and cross-scale quantification. We find that Li<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> particle distributed against the oxygen gradient signifies a compatibility match for the nucleation and transport kinetics, thus enabling the output of the electrode's maximum capacity and providing a basis for evaluating operating protocols for future applications. In this case, a 150% capacity enhancement is further achieved through the development of a universalizing methodology. This work opens the door for the rules and control of energy conversion in metal-air batteries, greatly accelerating their path to commercialization.