In suit physicial characterization of lithium anode

doi:1012028/j.issn.2095-4239.2018.0042

Abstract

Abstract: With the development of people's high requirement of energy storage devices, the development of secondary batteries with high energy density has attracted wide attention. The high theoretical capacity and low electrochemical potential of the Li electrode make it an ideal anode for high-energy-density batteries. However, significant challenges including dendrite growth and low Columbic efficiency still hinder the practical applications of rechargeable lithium metal batteries. The formation and growth of Li dendrites during charging process (Li depositing on anode side) and the low Columbic efficiency resulted from the high reactivity of lithium metal with the electrolyte solvents and salt anions. The continuous growth of Li dendrites is undesirable because it may penetrate the polymer separator and cause internal short circuit, leading to cell failure and safety issues such as fire and even explosion. Since the 1990s, with the development of observation and testing technology, researchers' attention has extended to the in-suit growth of lithium dendrites. What's more, it also provided an effective way for the regulation of lithium dendrites. Through the physical characterization of lithium batteries, the growth mechanism and influencing factors were obtained via exploring the growth behavior of lithium dendrite, which is helpful to propose new methods to improve the safety, utilization and cycle life of lithium anode. In this paper, the research progress of physical observation of metallic lithium electrode is reviewed, the state-of-the-art physical representation methods are summarized and its further development are predicted.

Key words: lithium metal, physical representation, Li dendrites, in suit measurement, visual battery

CLC Number:

TQ152

FANG Congcong, LIU Wen, WANG Yong, GUO Rui, PEI Haijuan, YU Shengxue, XIE Jingying. In suit physicial characterization of lithium anode[J]. Energy Storage Science and Technology, 2018, 7(S1): 54-62.

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