Open AccessHigh‐Rate and Large‐Capacity Lithium Metal Anode Enabled by Volume Conformal and Self‐Healable Composite Polymer Electrolyte
Author(s) -
Xia Shuixin,
Lopez Jeffrey,
Liang Chao,
Zhang Zhichu,
Bao Zhenan,
Cui Yi,
Liu Wei
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
advanced science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.388
H-Index - 100
ISSN - 2198-3844
DOI - 10.1002/advs.201802353
Subject(s) - electrolyte , materials science , anode , separator (oil production) , composite number , chemical engineering , polymer , lithium (medication) , metal , composite material , nanotechnology , electrode , metallurgy , chemistry , physics , engineering , thermodynamics , endocrinology , medicine
The widespread implementation of lithium‐metal batteries (LMBs) with Li metal anodes of high energy density has long been prevented due to the safety concern of dendrite‐related failure. Here a solid–liquid hybrid electrolyte consisting of composite polymer electrolyte (CPE) soaked with liquid electrolyte is reported. The CPE membrane composes of self‐healing polymer and Li + ‐conducting nanoparticles. The electrodeposited lithium metal in a uniform, smooth, and dense behavior is achieved using a hybrid electrolyte, rather than dendritic and pulverized structure for a conventional separator. The Li foil symmetric cells can deliver remarkable cycling performance at ultrahigh current density up to 20 mA cm −2 with an extremely low voltage hysteresis over 1500 cycles. A large areal capacity of 10 mAh cm −2 at 10 mA cm −2 could also be obtained. Furthermore, the Li|Li 4 Ti 5 O 12 cells based on the hybrid electrolyte achieve a higher specific capacity and longer cycling life than those using conventional separators. The superior performances are mainly attributed to strong adhesion, volume conformity, and self‐healing functionality of CPE, providing a novel approach and a significant step toward cost‐effective and large‐scalable LMBs.