Challenges and perspectives for new material solutions in batteries

This scientific article published by Vittorio Pellegrini Silvia Bodoardo, Daniel Brandell, Kristina Edström underlines the main challenges for future research in batteries. It addresses particularly the urgent needs of developing new environmentally-friendly material solutions to enhance the energy density and safety of these storage devices. This will require embracing a multidisciplinary approach encompassing traditional electrochemistry and experimental solid-state physics, multiscale computational modelling, materials synthesis, and advanced characterization and testing.

The figure below represents the lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), which is a new generation of layered oxide intercalation cathode for lithium ion batteries suitable for high energy density devices. The appropriate combination of transition metals stoichiometry opens the way to active materials capable to deliver high specific capacity and high working voltage, both instrumental to increase the stored energy density in a Li-ion battery. This appealing system is already used for batteries in the automotive market, hybrid and full electric vehicles, and emerging applicationa are stationary power plants, and smart energy grids. Further exploitation of lithium substitution in the layered oxide systems leads to materials termed as Li-rich NMC that are capable to significantly improve the cathode capacities.

You can access the full article at the following Link https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssc.2019.113733