Solid‐State Post Li Metal Ion Batteries: A Sustainable Forthcoming Reality?

Abstract

In the quest for a sustainable society, energy storage technology is destined to play a central role in the future energy landscape. Breakthroughs in materials and methods involving sustainable resources are crucial to protect humankind from the most serious consequences of climate change. Rechargeable batteries of all forms will be required to follow the path. Elements that are eligible to harmonically contribute to the development of a sustainable ecosystem and fulfil the demands of high energy density batteries include Na, K, Ca, Mg, Zn, and Al. Numerous research efforts are underway to explore new battery chemistries based on these elements and, depending on the field of application, different elements inherit different advantages and challenges. Full sustainability implies that the environmental friendliness of these systems must be characterized by a “cradle‐to‐grave” approach. In this context, the pursuit of global environmental and economical sustainability from mass production, raw materials, and technical challenges is discussed herein for the most recent battery concepts based on monovalent and multivalent metal anodes. A perspective on strategies and opportunities particularly around the development of all‐solid‐state system configurations is provided, and the most important obstacles to overcome in search of a more sustainable future for electrochemical energy storage are addressed.

Enhanced Room-Temperature Ionic Conductivity of NaCB11H12 via High-Energy Mechanical Milling

“…In the search for safer and more efficient electrochemical energy storage systems, Na-based all-solid-state batteries (Na-ASSBs) represent a viable evolution from the current Li-ion technology. Na-ASSBs combine the advantages of availability and low cost of Na precursors, 1,2 with both intrinsic enhanced safety and extended temperature operating range offered by the nonflammable solid electrolyte (SE) compared to lithium-ion batteries. 3−6 Moreover, they enable the use of metallic sodium as negative electrode, 7 thus potentially meeting the requirement of high volumetric (>750 Wh L −1 ) and gravimetric (>350 Wh kg −1 ) energy densities, 8 which are beyond current lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).…”

“…In the search for safer and more efficient electrochemical energy storage systems, Na-based all-solid-state batteries (Na-ASSBs) represent a viable evolution from the current Li-ion technology. Na-ASSBs combine the advantages of availability and low cost of Na precursors, , with both intrinsic enhanced safety and extended temperature operating range offered by the nonflammable solid electrolyte (SE) compared to lithium-ion batteries. − Moreover, they enable the use of metallic sodium as negative electrode, thus potentially meeting the requirement of high volumetric (>750 Wh L –1 ) and gravimetric (>350 Wh kg –1 ) energy densities, which are beyond current lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) . Finally, their production can skip several conditioning steps needed for the fabrication of conventional cells, thus reducing costs, as already shown for Li-based counterparts. , The challenge for Na-ASSBs has been mainly the development of room-temperature (rt) fast ion conductors that withstand elevated current densities.…”

Solvent Co-intercalation: An Emerging Mechanism in Li-, Na-, and K-Ion Capacitors

“…Comparison of Essential Characteristics of Li, Na, and K and the Electrochemical Properties of the Co-intercalating Electrode23,32,49 …”

Thio‐/LISICON and LGPS‐Type Solid Electrolytes for All‐Solid‐State Lithium‐Ion Batteries

“…[19] In addition, SSE can impede the overgrowth of Li dendrite and avert battery short circuit, making Li metal with high theoretical specific capacity (3860 mAh g −1 ) as one of the optimal anode materials. [20][21][22] 3) ASSLBs have the potential to achieve higher power densities. [23,24] SSE with Li ion as a single carrier has no concentration polarization, so it can operate in the case of high current to improve the power density of the battery.…”