Fast-Charging and Ultrahigh-Capacity Lithium Metal Anode Enabled by Surface Alloying

Journal Article · 28 January 2020 · Advanced Energy Materials

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.201902343 · OSTI ID:1605902

Xu, Tianhui ^[1]; Gao, Peng ^[1]; Li, Peirong ^[1]; Xia, Kai ^[1]; Han, Na ^[1]; Deng, Jun ^[1]; Li, Yanguang ^[1]; Lu, Jun  ^[2]

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1. Soochow Univ., Suzhou (China). Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Lab. for Carbon‐Based Functional Materials and Devices
2. Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Lemont, IL (United States)

Li metal anodes are going through a great revival but they still encounter grand challenges. One often neglected issue is that most reported Li metal anodes are only cyclable under relatively low current density (<5 mA cm^-2) and small areal capacity (<5 mAh cm^-2), which essentially limits their high-power applications and results in ineffective Li utilization (<1%). Herein, it is reported that surface alloyed Li metal anodes can enable reversible cycling with ultrafast rate and ultralarge areal capacity. Low-cost Si wafers are used and are chemically etched down to 20-30 mu m membranes. Simply laminating a Si membrane onto Li foil results in the formation of LixSi alloy film fused onto Li metal with mechanical robustness and high Li-ion conductivity. Symmetric cell measurements show that the surface alloyed Li anode has excellent cycling stability, even under high current density up to 25 mA cm^-2 and unprecedented areal capacity up to 100 mAh cm^-2. Furthermore, the surface alloyed Li anode is paired with amorphous MoS₃ cathode and achieves remarkable full-cell performance.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: National Natural Science Foundation of China (NNSFC); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-06CH11357
• OSTI ID: 1605902
• Journal Information: Advanced Energy Materials, Journal Name: Advanced Energy Materials Journal Issue: 8 Vol. 10; ISSN 1614-6832
• Publisher: WileyCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English