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LixCu alloy nanowires nested in Ni foam for highly stable Li metal composite anode

LixCu合金纳米线嵌套在泡沫镍中实现高度稳定的Li金属复合负极

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Abstract

Porous metal architectures are widely adopted as three-dimensional conducting scaffolds for constructing Li metal composite anodes, whereas their macropores hinder their practical application due to limited surface area and large pore size of few hundred micrometers. In this work, a network of LixCu solid solution alloy nanowires is in situ formed via infiltrating molten Li-Cu alloy into Ni foam and subsequent cooling treatment, whereby a three-component composite anode consisting of Li metal, LixCu alloy, and Ni foam is fabricated. The LixCu nanowires nested as secondary frame split the macropores into micropores, enlarging the active surface area and inducing uniform Li deposition significantly. The lithiophilicity of the alloy wires and the shrunken void size built by the hierarchical architecture can further tune the nucleation and growth behavior of Li. The multiscale synergetic effect between the primary and secondary scaffold guarantees the composite anode sheet with extraordinarily long-term cycling stability even under high current rates.

摘要

多孔金属骨架已经被广泛应用于制备Li金属复合负极的三维集流体, 但其孔径通常达到几百微米, 表面积有限, 阻碍了其实际应用. 在本工作中, 我们通过将熔融的锂铜合金热灌入到泡沫镍中再进行冷却,原位形成了LixCu合金网络, 整个体系由Li金属、LixCu合金和泡沫镍组成. LixCu纳米线嵌套在泡沫镍内部, 组成了次级网络, 将泡沫镍的大孔结构分割成了微孔, 增大了表面积, 并显著诱导Li均匀沉积. LixCu合金纳米线良好的亲锂性和次级网络减小的孔尺寸, 可以进一步调控Li的成核和生长行为. 泡沫镍和次级合金网络之间的多尺度协同效应使得复合负极即使在高电流密度下仍表现出超长循环稳定性.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21673033), Sichuan Science and Technology Program (2020071) and the Fundamental Research Founds for the Central Universities (ZYGX2019J024).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials and Energy, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, China

    Zihao Wang  (王子豪), Yuchi Liu  (刘芋池), Jianxiong Xing  (邢建雄), Aijun Zhou  (周爱军) & Jingze Li  (李晶泽)

  2. Yangtze Region Institute (Huzhou), University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Huzhou, 313001, China

    Zihao Wang  (王子豪), Yuchi Liu  (刘芋池), Jianxiong Xing  (邢建雄), Aijun Zhou  (周爱军) & Jingze Li  (李晶泽)

  3. School of Mathematics and Physics, Weinan Normal University, Weinan, 714099, China

    Jing Xue  (薛晶)

  4. Research and Development Center, Tianqi Lithium Co., Ltd., Chengdu, 610093, China

    Wei Zou  (邹崴) & Fu Zhou  (周付)

  5. Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Hong Li  (李泓)

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  1. Zihao Wang  (王子豪)
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  2. Jing Xue  (薛晶)
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  6. Jingze Li  (李晶泽)
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  8. Fu Zhou  (周付)
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  9. Hong Li  (李泓)
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Contributions

Wang Z conducted the experiments and characterizations. Xing J, Liu Y, Xue J, Zhou A, Zhou F and Zou W gave some valuable suggestion. Wang Z wrote the paper with support from Li J and Li H. All authors contributed to the general discussion.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Jingze Li  (李晶泽) or Hong Li  (李泓).

Additional information

Zihao Wang received his bachelor’s degree in materials science and engineering from the Southwest Petroleum University in 2018. Now he is pursuing his master’s degree under the supervision of Prof. Jingze Li at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC). His research interests are lithium metal anodes.

Jingze Li is a full-time professor at UESTC. He obtained his PhD degree of science from the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2000. His research focuses on the field of energy storage including lithium-ion batteries and solid-state batteries.

Hong Li is currently a professor at the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. His research interests are focused on the fundamental scientific problems in energy storage devices and their key materials. He has published more than 100 papers with over 2000 citations.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Wang, Z., Xue, J., Liu, Y. et al. LixCu alloy nanowires nested in Ni foam for highly stable Li metal composite anode. Sci. China Mater. 65, 69–77 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-021-1728-2

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