Suppressing Li dendrite growth has gained research interest due to the high theoretical capacity of Li metal anodes. Traditional Celgard membranes which are currently used in Li metal batteries fall short in achieving uniform Li flux at the electrode/electrolyte interface due to their inherent irregular pore sizes. Here, the use of an ultrathin (≈1.2 nm) carbon nanomembrane (CNM) which contains sub‐nanometer sized pores as an interlayer to regulate the mass transport of Li‐ions is demonstrated. Symmetrical cell analysis reveals that the cell with CNM interlayer cycles over 2x longer than the control experiment without the formation of Li dendrites. Further investigation on the Li plating morphology on Cu foil reveals highly dense deposits of Li metal using a standard carbonate electrolyte. A smoothed‐particle hydrodynamics simulation of the mass transport at the anode–electrolyte interface elucidates the effect of the CNM in promoting the formation of highly dense Li deposits and inhibiting the formation of dendrites. A lithium metal battery fabricated using the LiFePO4cathode exhibits a stable, flat voltage profile with low polarization for over 300 cycles indicating the effect of regulated mass transport.
Solid‐state lithium metal batteries with garnet‐type electrolyte provide several advantages over conventional lithium‐ion batteries, especially for safety and energy density. However, a few grand challenges such as the propagation of Li dendrites, poor interfacial contact between the solid electrolyte and the electrodes, and formation of lithium carbonate during ambient exposure over the solid‐state electrolyte prevent the viability of such batteries. Herein, an ultrathin sub‐nanometer porous carbon nanomembrane (CNM) is employed on the surface of solid‐state electrolyte (SSE) that increases the adhesion of SSE with electrodes, prevents lithium carbonate formation over the surface, regulates the flow of Li‐ions, and blocks any electronic leakage. The sub‐nanometer scale pores in CNM allow rapid permeation of Li‐ions across the electrode–electrolyte interface without the presence of any liquid medium. Additionally, CNM suppresses the propagation of Li dendrites by over sevenfold up to a current density of 0.7 mA cm−2and enables the cycling of all‐solid‐state batteries at low stack pressure of 2 MPa using LiFePO4cathode and Li metal anode. The CNM provides chemical stability to the solid electrolyte for over 4 weeks of ambient exposure with less than a 4% increase in surface impurities.
more » « less- Award ID(s):
- 1751472
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10426721
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Small
- Volume:
- 19
- Issue:
- 44
- ISSN:
- 1613-6810
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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