Lithium metal is the “holy grail” anode for next‐generation high‐energy rechargeable batteries due to its high capacity and lowest redox potential among all reported anodes. However, the practical application of lithium metal batteries (LMBs) is hindered by safety concerns arising from uncontrollable Li dendrite growth and infinite volume change during the lithium plating and stripping process. The formation of stable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) and the construction of robust 3D porous current collectors are effective approaches to overcoming the challenges of Li metal anode and promoting the practical application of LMBs. In this review, four strategies in structure and electrolyte design for high‐performance Li metal anode, including surface coating, porous current collector, liquid electrolyte, and solid‐state electrolyte are summarized. The challenges, opportunities, perspectives on future directions, and outlook for practical applications of Li metal anode, are also discussed.

Na-ion batteries (NIBs) are promising alternatives to Li-ion batteries (LIBs) due to the low cost, abundance, and high sustainability of sodium resources. However, the high performance of inorganic electrode materials...

In this work, we designed and synthesized three novel polymeric cathode materials based on azo and carbonyl groups for Na‐ion and K‐ion batteries. The electrochemical performance of the polymer with a naphthalene backbone structure is better than that with benzene and biphenyl structures due to faster kinetics and lower solubility in the electrolyte. It unravels the rational design principle of extending π‐conjugation aromatic structures in redox‐active polymers to enhance the electrochemical performance. To further optimize the polymeric cathodes, the polymer with a naphthalene backbone structure is mixed with nitrogen‐doped graphene to increase the conductivity and mitigate the dissolution. The resulting cathodes deliver high specific capacity, long cycle life, and fast‐charging capability. Post‐cycling characterizations were employed to study the chemical structure and morphology evolution upon cycling, demonstrating that the active centers (azo and carbonyl groups) in the polymer can undergo reversible redox reactions with Na+/K+ for sustainable alkali‐ion batteries.

No abstract

A conjugated tetracarboxylate, Na4C10H2O8, shows low redox potentials (∼0.65 V), long cycle life (1000 cycles), and fast charging capability (up to 2 A g−1), demonstrating a promising organic anode for stable and sustainable Na-ion batteries.