Empowering the Future: Exploring the Construction and Characteristics of Lithium-Ion Batteries

Lithium element has attracted remarkable attraction for energy storage devices, over the past 30 years. Lithium is a light element and exhibits the low atomic number 3, just after hydrogen and helium in the periodic table. The lithium atom has a strong tendency to release one electron and constitute a positive charge, as Li . Initially, lithium metal was employed as a negative electrode, which released electrons. However, it was observed that its structure changed after the repetition of charge-discharge cycles. To remedy this, the cathode mainly consisted of layer metal oxide and olive, e.g., cobalt oxide, LiFePO4, etc., along with some contents of lithium, while the anode was assembled by graphite and silicon, etc. Moreover, the electrolyte was prepared using the lithium salt in a suitable solvent to attain a greater concentration of lithium ions. Owing to the lithium ions’ role, the battery’s name was mentioned as a lithium-ion battery. Herein, the presented work describes the working and operational mechanism of the lithium-ion battery. Further, the lithium-ion batteries’ general view and future prospects have also been elaborated.

Viability of all-solid-state lithium metal battery coupled with oxide solid-state electrolyte and high-capacity cathode

Owing to the utilization of lithium metal as anode with the ultrahigh theoretical capacity density of 3860 mA h g^(-1)and oxide-based ceramic solid-state electrolytes(SE),e.g.,garnet-type Li7La_(3)Zr_(2)O_(12)(LLZO),all-state-state lithium metal batteries(ASLMBs)have been widely accepted as the promising alternatives for providing the satisfactory energy density and safety.However,its applications are still challenged by plenty of technical and scientific issues.In this contribution,the co-sintering temperature at 500℃is proved as a compromise method to fabricate the composite cathode with structural integrity and declined capacity fading of LiNi_(0.5)Co_(0.2)Mn_(0.3)O_(2)(NCM).On the other hand,it tends to form weaker grain boundary(GB)inside polycrystalline LLZO at inadequate sintering temperature for LLZO,which can induce the intergranular failure of SE during the growth of Li filament inside the unavoidable defect on the interface of SE.Therefore,increasing the strength of GB,refining the grain to 0.4μm,and precluding the interfacial defect are suggested to postpone the electro-chemo-mechanical failure of SE with weak GB.Moreover,the advanced sintering techniques to lower the co-sintering temperature for both NCM-LLZO composite cathode and LLZO SE can be posted out to realize the viability of state-of-the-art ASLMBs with higher energy density as well as the guaranteed safety.

Numerical simulation and performance analysis of the radiofrequency inductive cathode

The radiofrequency(RF) inductive cathode has great prospects in space missions with long mission cycles, large speed increments, and rapid response requirements as the main electron source and neutralizer in Hall thrusters and ion thrusters. This paper proposes a comprehensive multi-physics RF inductive cathode model in which the RF electromagnetic field, electrostatic field for extracting electrons, flow field, plasma transport and electrochemical reaction process are all accounted for. Each physical field mentioned above can form a closed partial differential equation. The two-dimensional finite element code COMSOL is used to solve the multi-physics model. With this model, the formation process of the anode spot is exhibited and demonstrates the non-bipolar flow theory in practice. The simulation results demonstrate that the current jump in the RF inductive cathode is caused by the anode spot. Furthermore, the influences of preset discharge parameters such as RF power, bias voltage and actuating gas flow as well as structural parameters like the coil structure, discharge chamber size and ion collector area, emission hole size, distance between the anode target and the emission hole etc on the cathode performance are investigated, and some important optimal parameters are proposed.

A hydrophilic poly(methyl vinyl ether-alt-maleic acid) polymer as a green, universal, and dual-functional binder for high-performance silicon anode and sulfur cathode

Binders could play crucial or even decisive roles in the fabrication of low-cost, stable and high-capacity electrodes. This is especially the case for the silicon (Si) anodes and sulfur (S) cathodes that undergo large volume change and active material loss in lithium-ion batteries during prolonged cycles. Herein, a hydrophilic polymer poly(methyl vinyl ether-alt-maleic acid) (PMVEMA) was explored as a dual-functional aqueous binder for the preparation of high-performance silicon anode and sulfur cathode. Benefiting from the dual functions of PMVEMA, i.e., the excellent dispersion ability and strong binding forces, the as-prepared electrodes exhibit improved capacity, rate capability and long-term cycling performance. In particular, the as-prepared Si electrode delivers a high initial discharge capacity of 1346.5 mAh g^(−1) at a high rate of 8.4 A/g and maintains 834.5 mAh g^(−1) after 300 cycles at 4.2 A/g, while the as-prepared S cathode exhibits enhanced cycling performance with high remaining discharge capacities of 663.4 mAh g^(−1) after 100 cycles at 0.2 C and 487.07 mAh g^(−1) after 300 cycles at 1 C, respectively. These encouraging results suggest that PMVEMA could be a universal binder to facilitate the green manufacture of both anode and cathode for high-capacity energy storage systems.

Theoretical and Experimental Sets of Choice Anode/Cathode Architectonics for High-Performance Full-Scale LIB Built-up Models

To control the power hierarchy design of lithium-ion battery(LIB)builtup sets for electric vehicles(EVs),we offer intensive theoretical and experimental sets of choice anode/cathode architectonics that can be modulated in full-scale LIB built-up models.As primary structural tectonics,heterogeneous composite superstructures of full-cell-LIB(anode//cathode)electrodes were designed in closely packed flower agave rosettes TiO2@C(FRTO@C anode)and vertical-star-tower LiFePO4@C(VST@C cathode)building blocks to regulate the electron/ion movement in the three-dimensional axes and orientation pathways.The superpower hierarchy surfaces and multi-directional orientation components may create isosurface potential electrodes with mobile electron movements,in-to-out interplay electron dominances,and electron/charge cloud distributions.This study is the first to evaluate the hotkeys of choice anode/cathode architectonics to assemble different LIB-electrode platforms with high-mobility electron/ion flows and high-performance capacity functionalities.Density functional theory calculation revealed that the FRTO@C anode and VST-(i)@C cathode architectonics are a superior choice for the configuration of full-scale LIB built-up models.The integrated FRTO@C//VST-(i)@C full-scale LIB retains a huge discharge capacity(~94.2%),an average Coulombic efficiency of 99.85%after 2000 cycles at 1 C,and a high energy density of 127 Wh kg?1,thereby satisfying scale-up commercial EV requirements.

Fabricating a PVDF skin for PEO-based SPE to stabilize the interface both at cathode and anode for Li-ion batteries

Poly(ethylene oxide)(PEO)-based solid polymer electrolyte is always the most promising candidate for preparing thinner, lighter and safer lithium-ion batteries. However, the lithium dendrites growth of lithium anode and the high-voltage oxidation of cathode are easy to cause the PEO-based battery failure.The way to deal with the different challenges on both sides of the anode and cathode is pursued all the time. In this study, we reported a new strategy to construct the PVDF/PEO/PVDF three-layer structure for solid polymer electrolyte(marked as PVDF@PEO) using PVDF as the functional “skin”. The PVDF@PEO electrolyte can effectively prevent from the lithium dendrites, and shows a stable cycling life over1000 h in the Li/PVDF@PEO/Li cell. In addition, the PVDF@PEO electrolyte exhibits higher oxidation resistance and can be matched with high-voltage LiCoO_(2) cathode. The Li/PVDF@PEO/LiCoO_(2) cell delivered a specific capacity of about 150 m Ah g^(-1) over 150 cycles and maintained good cycling stability. Our research provides insights that the polymer electrolytes constructed with PVDF functional “skin” can simultaneously meet the challenges of both anode and cathode in solid-state lithium-ion batteries(SSLIBs).

A thin Si nanowire network anode for high volumetric capacity and long-life lithium-ion batteries

Silicon nanowires(Si NWs)have been widely researched as the best alternative to graphite anodes for the next-generation of high-performance lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)owing to their high capacity and low discharge potential.However,growing binder-free Si NW anodes with adequate mass loading and stable capacity is severely limited by the low surface area of planar current collectors(CCs),and is particularly challenging to achieve on standard pure-Cu substrates due to the ubiquitous formation of Li+inactive silicide phases.Here,the growth of densely-interwoven In-seeded Si NWs is facilitated by a thin-film of copper-silicide(CS)network in situ grown on a Cu-foil,allowing for a thin active NW layer(<10μm thick)and high areal loading(≈1.04 mg/cm^(2))binder-free electrode architecture.The electrode exhibits an average Coulombic efficiency(CE)of>99.6%and stable performance for>900 cycles with≈88.7%capacity retention.More significantly,it delivers a volumetric capacity of≈1086.1 m A h/cm^(3)at 5C.The full-cell versus lithium manganese oxide(LMO)cathode delivers a capacity of≈1177.1 m A h/g at 1C with a stable rate capability.This electrode architecture represents significant advances toward the development of binder-free Si NW electrodes for LIB application.

A rapid one-step electrodeposition process for fabrication of superhydrobic surfaces on anode and cathode

This work presents a method to solve the weak solubility of zinc chloride(ZnCl_2) in the ethanol by adding some reasonable water into an ethanol electrolyte containing ZnCl_2 and myristic acid(CH_3(CH_2)_(12)COOH).A rapid one-step electrodeposition process was developed to fabricate anodic(2.5 min) and cathodic(40 s) superhydrophobic surfaces of copper substrate(contact angle more than 150°) in an aqueous ethanol electrolyte.Morphology,composition,chemical structure and superhydrophobicity of these superhydrophobic surfaces were investigated by SEM,FTIR,XRD,and contact angle measurement,respectively.The results indicate that water ratio of the electrolyte can reduce the required deposition time,superhydrophobic surface needs over 30 min with anhydrous electrolyte,while it needs only 2.5 min with electrolyte including 10 mL water,and the maximum contact angle of anodic surface is 166° and that of the cathodic surface is 168°.Two copper electrode surfaces have different reactions in the process of electrodeposition time,and the anodic copper surface covers copper myristate(Cu[CH_3(CH_2)_(12)COO]_2) and cupric chloride(CuCl);while,zinc myristate(Zn[CH_3(CH_2)_(12)COO]_2) and pure zinc(Zn) appear on the cathodic surface.

Powering the future: A comprehensive review on calcium-ion batteries

Due to concerns regarding the future availability,cost,and safety of lithium in Li-ion batteries(LIBs),researchers are exploring alternative chemistries such as Na-ion,Li-S,Li-air,and multivalent ion technologies.Multivalent ion technologies,which utilize divalent or trivalent ions,like Mg^(2+),Ca^(2+),and Al^(3+),show promise in achieving greater energy densities than LIBs due to their ability to deposit uniformly on anodes and intercalate into cathodes.While magnesium-ion batteries(MIBs) have been the primary area of research for multivalent ion batteries,the cost-effectiveness and abundance of calcium have sparked a growing interest in calcium-ion batteries(CIBs) in recent years.Compared to LIBs,CIBs have the potential to provide longer cycle life,enhanced safety,and increased energy densities.However,the development of CIBs comes with several challenges,such as finding suitable electrode and electrolyte materials that ensure the stability and safety of the battery.The primary hurdle in CIBs lies in the plating/stripping process.There is a significant hindrance preventing the occurrence of plating/stripping in CIBs,which lies in the formation of a passive layer resulting from the decomposition of the electrolyte.The objective of this article is to examine the advancements made in CIBs.Additionally,it aims to comprehensively assess the mechanisms and materials employed in various battery components,as well as the obstacles encountered in CIBs.This includes recent advancements in electrode materials,electrolytes,cell configurations,and the challenges and opportunities for enhancing the performance and commercial viability of CIBs.

Experimental Investigation to Evaluate LiFePO4Batteries Anode and Cathode Elastic Properties under Cyclic Temperature Loading Conditions

Experimental investigations and associated methods are provided to characterize the mechanical properties of a lithium-ion battery accounting for operating temperature variation and thermal effects.Material properties for LiFePO4cathode and anode samples taken from an off-the-shelf battery are evaluated in new and fatigued(subjected to charging and discharging cycles)conditions.

HCFL Lamp Only Lights Up under Coexistence of Cathode and Anode in Ar Gas Space for Half Cycle of AC Driving Circuit

Vacuum space between Ar atoms in unlighted HCFL lamps is an electric insulator, because vacuum fills up with strong negative electric field from orbital electrons in 3p6 electron shell of Ar atoms. Vacuum space in lighted FL lamps changes to the neutral vacuum that provides a superconductive vacuum for moving electrons at above room temperature. The complications of lighting mechanisms of HCFL lamps for more than 80 years have clearly solved with coexistence of disparate external and internal electric circuits for each half cycle. External electric circuit acts as two roles. One helps for formation of internal electric circuit in Ar gas space by electric field. Other picks up induced voltages from capacitor CFL. HCFL lamp only lights up with moving electrons in internal DC driving circuit. Electrons in HCFL lamp only move from cathode to anode, which respectively have negative and positive potentials against grand (V = 0), and which are formed with volumes of heated corona light (4G) at around W-filament metal electrodes with a help of heated BaO particles. The HCFL lamp that emits thermoelectrons is a false story. Here we have totally revised the fundamentals of the lighting mechanism of the established HCFL lamps for last 80 years.

Commercially Viable Hybrid Li-Ion/Metal Batteries with High Energy Density Realized by Symbiotic Anode and Prelithiated Cathode

The energy density of commercial lithium(Li)ion batteries with graphite anode is reaching the limit.It is believed that directly utilizing Li metal as anode without a host could enhance the battery’s energy density to the maximum extent.However,the poor reversibility and infinite volume change of Li metal hinder the realistic implementation of Li metal in battery community.Herein,a commercially viable hybrid Li-ion/metal battery is realized by a coordinated strategy of symbiotic anode and prelithiated cathode.To be specific,a scalable template-removal method is developed to fabricate the porous graphite layer(PGL),which acts as a symbiotic host for Li ion intercalation and subsequent Li metal deposition due to the enhanced lithiophilicity and sufficient ion-conducting pathways.A continuous dissolution-deintercalation mechanism during delithiation process further ensures the elimination of dead Li.As a result,when the excess plating Li reaches 30%,the PGL could deliver an ultrahigh average Coulombic efficiency of 99.5% for 180 cycles with a capacity of 2.48 m Ah cm^(-2) in traditional carbonate electrolyte.Meanwhile,an air-stable recrystallized lithium oxalate with high specific capacity(514.3 m Ah g^(-1))and moderate operating potential(4.7-5.0 V)is introduced as a sacrificial cathode to compensate the initial loss and provide Li source for subsequent cycles.Based on the prelithiated cathode and initial Li-free symbiotic anode,under a practical-level3 m Ah capacity,the assembled hybrid Li-ion/metal full cell with a P/N ratio(capacity ratio of Li Ni_(0.8)Co_(0.1)Mn_(0.1)O_(2) to graphite)of 1.3exhibits significantly improved capacity retention after 300 cycles,indicating its great potential for high-energy-density Li batteries.

Top-Emitting White Organic Light-Emitting Diodes Based on Cu as Both Anode and Cathode

It is still challenging to obtain broadband emission covering visible light spectrum as much as possible with negligible angular dependence. In this work, we demonstrate a low driving voltage top-emitting white organic light-emitting diode （TEWOLED） based on complementary blue and yellow phosphor emitters with negligible angular dependence. The bottom copper anode with medium reflectance, which is compatible with the standard complementary metal oxide semiconductor （CMOS） technology below 0.13 μm, and the semitransparent multi- layer Cs2CO3/AI/Cu cathode as a top electrode, are introduced to realize high-performance TEWOLED. Our TEWOLED achieves high efficiencies of 15.4callA and 12.1 1m/W at a practical brightness of lO00cd/m2 at low voltage of 4 V.

Effect of Sacrificial Anode Protection for Steel Pipe Piles at Dandong Port

The sacrificial anode protection system for the steel pipe piles of the 3rd berth of Dandong; wharf at Dandong port has operated for eight years. In this paper, the program design and the protection effect of the sacrificial anode protection system are presented. The results of various inspections show that the piles are protected very satisfactorily.

A Mixed Ether Electrolyte for Lithium Metal Anode Protection in Working Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Lithium-sulfur(Li-S) battery is considered as a promising energy storage system to realize high energy density.Nevertheless,unstable lithium metal anode emerges as the bottleneck toward practical applications,especially with limited anode excess required in a working full cell.In this contribution,a mixed diisopropyl ether-based(mixed-DIPE) electrolyte was proposed to effectively protect lithium metal anode in Li-S batteries with sulfurized polyacrylonitrile(SPAN) cathodes.The mixed-DIPE electrolyte improves the compatibility to lithium metal and suppresses the dissolution of lithium polysulfides,rendering significantly improved cycling stability.Concretely,Li | Cu half-cells with the mixed-DIPE electrolyte cycled stably for 120 cycles,which is nearly five times longer than that with routine carbonate-based electrolyte.Moreover,the mixedDIPE electrolyte contributed to a doubled life span of 156 cycles at 0.5 C in Li | SPAN full cells with ultrathin 50 μm Li metal anodes compared with the routine electrolyte.This contribution affords an effective electrolyte formula for Li metal anode protection and is expected to propel the practical applications of high-energy-density Li-S batteries.

Preparation and Electrochemical Properties of Pb-0.3wt%Ag/Pb-WC Composite Inert Anodes

We prepared Pb-0.3wt%Ag/Pb-WC（WC stands for tungsten carbide,the same below） composite inert anodes by double-pulse electrodeposition on the surface of Pb-0.3wt%Ag substrates,and investigated the electrochemical properties of the composite inert anodes,which were obtained under different forward pulse average current densities from 2 A/dm2 to 5 A/dm2 and WC concentrations from 0 g/L to 40 g/L in bath.The kinetic parameters of oxygen evolution,corrosion potential and corrosion current of the composite inert anodes were obtained in a synthetic zinc electrowinning electrolyte of 50 g/L Zn2＋ and 150 g/L H2SO4 at 35 ℃,by measuring the anodic polarization curves,Tafel polarization curves and cyclic voltammetry curves.The results show that Pb-0.3wt% Ag/Pb-WC composite inert anodes obtained under forward pulse average current density of 3 A/dm2 and WC concentration of 30 g/L in an original acid plating bath,possess higher electrocatalytic activity of oxygen evolution,lower overpotential of oxygen evolution,better reversibility of electrode reaction and corrosion resistance in [ZnSO4＋H2SO4] solution.The overpotential of oxygen evolution of the composite inert anode is 0.926 V under 500 A/m2 in [ZnSO4＋H2SO4] solution,and 245 mV lower than that of Pb-1% Ag alloy;the corrosion current of the composite inert anode is 0.95×10-4A which is distinctly lower than that of Pb-1%Ag alloy,showing the excellent corrosion resistance.

Exploring the structural properties of cathode and anode materials in Li-ion battery via neutron diffraction technique

As a unique microprobe for structure and dynamics of materials,neutron possesses superior ability in penetration as well as sensitivity for light and magnetic elements in comparison with X-ray and electron.As for the research and development of lithium-ion batteries(LIBs),neutron diffraction techniques play an indispensable role in exploring the structural properties of various electrode materials,especially the detailed structural evolution of cathode and anode materials during electrochemical cycling.Moreover,based on thorough analysis of neutron diffraction results,an in-depth and systematic understanding of some fundamental mechanisms,such as the formation mechanism of defects and migration mechanism of lithium ions,could also be established,which is essential for the development of high-performance electrode materials for the next-generation LIBs.Nevertheless,that technique would not seem to be widely applied yet in comparison with the application of X-ray diffraction and more attention should be paid.To demonstrate the advantages of neutron diffraction technique in research of LIBs materials,this work systematically summarizes representative neutron diffraction studies on exploring structural details hidden in electrode materials and on probing structural evolution of electrode materials during charge/discharge processes.Prospects for further applications of neutron diffraction techniques in research of LIBs are also put forward.

Recent Advances on the Development of Functional Materials in Microbial Fuel Cells:From Fundamentals to Challenges and Outlooks

Microbial fuel cells(MFCs),as a sustainable and promising technology to solve both environmental pollution and energy shortage,have captured tremendous attention.The conversion efficiency of chemical energy contained in organic waste or wastewater to electricity via microbial metabolism strongly depends on the performance of each functional unit,including the anode,cathode and separator/membrane used in MFCs.Therefore,significant attention has been paid toward developing advanced functional materials to enhance the performance of each unit or provide new featured functions.This review paper provides a comprehensive review on recent achievements and advances in the modification and development of functional materials for MFC systems,including 1)the development of functional anode materials for enhanced microbial compatibilities as well as electron transfer capabilities,2)the development of cost-effective separators/membranes such as ion exchange membrane,porous membrane,polymer electrolyte membrane and composite membrane,and 3)the development of functional cathode catalysts to decrease the over-potential and enhance the electrocatalytic efficiency for oxygen reduction reaction in order to substitute the common costly Pt catalyst.The challenges and outlooks of functional materials for MFC applications are also discussed.

Simulation of Secondary Electron and Backscattered Electron Emission in A6 Relativistic Magnetron Driven by Different Cathode

Prticle-in-cell（PIC） simulations demonstrated that,when the relativistic magnetron with diffraction output（MDO） is applied with a 410 kV voltage pulse,or when the relativistic magnetron with radial output is applied with a 350 kV voltage pulse,electrons emitted from the cathode with high energy will strike the anode block wall.The emitted secondary electrons and backscattered electrons affect the interaction between electrons and RF fields induced by the operating modes,which decreases the output power in the radial output relativistic magnetron by about 15%（10%for the axial output relativistic magnetron）,decreases the anode current by about 5%（5%for the axial output relativistic magnetron）,and leads to a decrease of electronic efficiency by 8%（6%for the axial output relativistic magnetron）.The peak value of the current formed by secondary and backscattered current equals nearly half of the amplitude of the anode current,which may help the growth of parasitic modes when the applied magnetic field is near the critical magnetic field separating neighboring modes.Thus,mode competition becomes more serious.

Interface challenges and optimization strategies for aqueous zinc-ion batteries

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries have advantages over lithium-ion batteries,such as low cost,and good safety.However,their development is currently facing several challenges.One of the main critical challenges is their poor electrode–electrolyte interface.Addressing this requires understanding the physics and chemistry at the electrode–electrolyte interface,including the cathode-electrolyte interface and anodeelectrolyte interface.This review first identifies and analyses the interfacial challenges of aqueous zincion batteries.Then,it discusses the design strategies for addressing the defined interfacial issues from the perspectives of electrolyte optimization,electrode modification,and separator improvement.Finally,it provides corrective recommendations and strategies for the rational design of electrode–electrolyte interface in aqueous zinc-ion batteries towards their high-performance and reliable energy storage.