Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2019
The 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to John Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino for the development of lithium-ion batteries. To celebrate the award, Nature Research presents this Collection including publications from the prize winners, and further research and review content focused on Li-ion batteries, and beyond — work that is laying the foundations of a wireless and fossil-fuel-free future.
Content ‘from the winners’ and recent review articles (published from 2014 onwards) are free to access until April 2020.
Featured content
How we made the Li-ion rechargeable battery
Progress in portable and ubiquitous electronics would not be possible without rechargeable batteries. John B. Goodenough recounts the history of the lithium-ion rechargeable battery.
- John B. Goodenough
REVERSE ENGINEERING9 MAR 2018Nature Electronics
The rechargeable revolution: A better battery
Chemists are reinventing rechargeable cells to drive down costs and boost capacity.
- Richard Van Noorden
NEWS FEATURE5 MAR 2014Nature News
Service update
Professor M Stanley Whittingham is a pioneering researcher in the development of lithium-ion batteries at Binghamton University and Kent Snyder leads battery research and development at Ford Motor Company. Nature Energy caught up with both during the Nature…
- Changjun Zhang
Q&A12 APR 2018Nature Energy
Is lithium the new gold?
Jean-Marie Tarascon ponders on the value of lithium, an element known for about 200 years, whose importance is now fast increasing in view of the promises it holds for energy storage and electric cars.
- Jean-Marie Tarascon
IN YOUR ELEMENT1 JUN 2010Nature Chemistry
From the winners
High-energy lithium metal pouch cells with limited anode swelling and long stable cycles
Much has been said about the high-energy, long-lasting potential of Li metal batteries, and yet little has been demonstrated at the cell scale. Here, Jun Liu and colleagues demonstrate a Li metal pouch cell with a 300 Wh kg−1 energy density and a 200-cycle lifetime.
- Chaojiang Niu,
- Hongkyung Lee ⋯
- Jun Liu
ARTICLE13 MAY 2019Nature Energy
Pathways for practical high-energy long-cycling lithium metal batteries
Jun Liu and Battery500 Consortium colleagues contemplate the way forward towards high-energy and long-cycling practical batteries.
- Jun Liu,
- Zhenan Bao ⋯
- Ji-Guang Zhang
PERSPECTIVE25 FEB 2019Nature Energy
Lithium anode stable in air for low-cost fabrication of a dendrite-free lithium battery
The lithium metal is a promising anode material for batteries; however, the growth of dendrite and its instability against moisture are two technical challenges. Here the authors address both issues by introducing a bifunctional layer consisting of hydrophobic…
- Xiaowei Shen,
- Yutao Li ⋯
- John B. Goodenough
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS22 FEB 2019Nature Communications
Nanotechnology for environmentally sustainable electromobility
This Analysis reports an environmental life-cycle screening of various nanomaterials for both batteries and fuel cells for electric vehicles, and discusses the most promising candidates for a sustainable technology.
- Linda Ager-Wick Ellingsen,
- Christine Roxanne Hung ⋯
- Anders Hammer Strømman
ANALYSIS6 DEC 2016Nature Nanotechnology
Design principles for oxygen-reduction activity on perovskite oxide catalysts for fuel cells and metal–air batteries
With the cost of noble metal oxygen-reduction catalysts rendering some fuel cells and batteries prohibitively expensive, the search for effective and cheaper catalysts is underway and would be speeded up by ‘design principles’. Now, the catalytic activity of…
- Jin Suntivich,
- Hubert A. Gasteiger ⋯
- Yang Shao-Horn
ARTICLE12 JUN 2011Nature Chemistry
Reviews
Designing polymers for advanced battery chemistries
Polymers are ubiquitous in batteries as binders, separators, electrolytes and electrode coatings. In this Review, we discuss the principles underlying the design of polymers with advanced functionalities to enable progress in battery engineering, with a specific…
- Jeffrey Lopez,
- David G. Mackanic ⋯
- Zhenan Bao
REVIEW ARTICLE3 APR 2019Nature Reviews Materials
Liquid-phase syntheses of sulfide electrolytes for all-solid-state lithium battery
The high lithium-ion conductivity and deformability of solid sulfide electrolytes make them key materials in all-solid-state lithium batteries. Liquid-phase reactions are valid and scalable approaches for the preparation of sulfide-based solid electrolytes that…
- Akira Miura,
- Nataly Carolina Rosero-Navarro ⋯
- Masahiro Tatsumisago
REVIEW ARTICLE19 FEB 2019Nature Reviews Chemistry
Characterization and performance evaluation of lithium-ion battery separators
Separators are an essential part of current lithium-ion batteries. Vanessa Wood and co-workers review the properties of separators, discuss their relationship with battery performance and survey the techniques for characterizing separators.
- Marie Francine Lagadec,
- Raphael Zahn &
- Vanessa Wood
REVIEW ARTICLE31 DEC 2018Nature Energy
Understanding materials challenges for rechargeable ion batteries with in situ transmission electron microscopy
In situ TEM is a powerful tool that helps to understand energy storage behaviors of various materials. This review summarizes the critical discoveries, enabled by in situTEM, in rechargeable ion batteries, and foresees its bright future for extensive applications.
- Yifei Yuan,
- Khalil Amine ⋯
- Reza Shahbazian-Yassar
REVIEW ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS25 AUG 2017Nature Communications
Sustainability and in situ monitoring in battery development
Significant progress in battery technology is crucial to ensure a transition towards a carbon-neutral society. Recent advances in both sustainability and operandotechniques together with remaining challenges and possible solutions are now reviewed.
- C. P. Grey &
- J. M. Tarascon
REVIEW ARTICLE20 DEC 2016Nature Materials
Promise and reality of post-lithium-ion batteries with high energy densities
Post-lithium-ion batteries are reviewed with a focus on their operating principles, advantages and the challenges that they face. The volumetric energy density of each battery is examined using a commercial pouch-cell configuration to evaluate its practical…
- Jang Wook Choi &
- Doron Aurbach
REVIEW ARTICLE31 MAR 2016Nature Reviews Materials
Towards greener and more sustainable batteries for electrical energy storage
Energy storage using batteries offers a solution to the intermittent nature of energy production from renewable sources; however, such technology must be sustainable. This Review discusses battery development from a sustainability perspective, considering the…
- D. Larcher &
- J-M. Tarascon
REVIEW ARTICLE17 NOV 2014Nature Chemistry
Nanostructured materials for advanced energy conversion and storage devices
- Antonino Salvatore Aricò,
- Peter Bruce ⋯
- Walter van Schalkwijk
REVIEW ARTICLE1 MAY 2005Nature Materials
Li–O2 and Li–S batteries with high energy storage
The amount of energy that can be stored in Li-ion batteries is insufficient for the long-term needs of society, for example, for use in extended-range electric vehicles. Here, the energy-storage capabilities of Li–O2 and Li–S batteries are compared with that of…
- Peter G. Bruce,
- Stefan A. Freunberger ⋯
- Jean-Marie Tarascon
REVIEW ARTICLE15 DEC 2011Nature Materials
Materials for electrochemical capacitors
- Patrice Simon &
- Yury Gogotsi
REVIEW ARTICLE1 NOV 2008Nature Materials
Building better batteries
A new series begins this week. 'Horizons' are commissioned articles in which experts speculate on what will happen over the next few years in their fields. On the cover, one of Antony Gormley's figures in his Another Place installation sets the tone. In the…
- M. Armand &
- J.-M. Tarascon
HORIZONS6 FEB 2008Nature
Issues and challenges facing rechargeable lithium batteries
- J.-M. Tarascon &
- M. Armand
REVIEW ARTICLE15 NOV 2001Nature
Research articles
A high-energy-density and long-life lithium-ion battery via reversible oxide–peroxide conversion
Lithium-ion batteries exhibit high theoretical gravimetric energy density but present a series of challenges due to the open cell architecture. Now, Zhou and co-workers confine the reversible Li2O/Li2O2 interconversion into a sealed cell by pre-embedding Li2O…
- Yu Qiao,
- Kezhu Jiang ⋯
- Haoshen Zhou
ARTICLE7 OCT 2019Nature Catalysis
Long cycle life and dendrite-free lithium morphology in anode-free lithium pouch cells enabled by a dual-salt liquid electrolyte
Extensive efforts have recently been geared towards developing all-solid-state batteries largely because of their potential to enable high-energy-density Li anodes. Here, the authors report a high-performance lithium pouch cell with no excess lithium, enabled by just a dual-salt liquid electrolyte.
- Rochelle Weber,
- Matthew Genovese ⋯
- J. R. Dahn
ARTICLE15 JUL 2019Nature Energy
High areal capacity battery electrodes enabled by segregated nanotube networks
While thicker battery electrodes are in high demand to maximize energy density, mechanical instability is a major hurdle in their fabrication. Here the authors report that segregated carbon nanotube networks enable thick, high-capacity electrodes for a range of materials including Si and NMC.
- Sang-Hoon Park,
- Paul J. King ⋯
- Valeria Nicolosi
ARTICLE17 JUN 2019Nature Energy
Aqueous Li-ion battery enabled by halogen conversion–intercalation chemistry in graphite
Composite cathodes created by anionic redox reactions of bromine and chlorine intercalated into graphite, combined with water-in-salt electrolyte and graphite anodes, provide aqueous lithium-ion batteries with improved energy density.
- Chongyin Yang,
- Ji Chen ⋯
- Chunsheng Wang
LETTER8 MAY 2019Nature
Deep eutectic solvents for cathode recycling of Li-ion batteries
The ever-increasing applications for Li-ion batteries in markets call for environmentally friendly and energy-efficient recycling technologies. Here the authors report using a deep eutectic solvent to extract valuable components of Li-ion batteries.
- Mai K. Tran,
- Marco-Tulio F. Rodrigues ⋯
- Pulickel M. Ajayan
ARTICLE1 APR 2019Nature Energy
Scalable synthesis of ant-nest-like bulk porous silicon for high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes
Silicon is a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries but experiences large volume changes during cycling. Here the authors report a scalable method to synthesize porous ant-nest-like silicons. The unique structure of this anode solves the swelling…
- Weili An,
- Biao Gao ⋯
- Kaifu Huo
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS29 MAR 2019Nature Communications
High-throughput first-principles-calculations based estimation of lithium ion storage in monolayer rhenium disulfide
Rhenium disulfide is a promising lithium ion battery material but its distorted structure makes computational modelling challenging. Here hardware-accelerator-assisted high-throughput DFT based structure searching is used to model the reversible lithiation of…
- Arnab Kabiraj &
- Santanu Mahapatra
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS13 NOV 2018Communications Chemistry
Efficient thermal management of Li-ion batteries with a passive interfacial thermal regulator based on a shape memory alloy
Thermal fluctuations inside batteries limit their performance and pose various safety hazards. Here, the authors develop a shape memory alloy-based thermal regulator that stabilizes battery temperature in both hot and cold extreme environments.
- Menglong Hao,
- Jian Li ⋯
- Chris Dames
ARTICLE1 OCT 2018Nature Energy
Graphene-Like-Graphite as Fast-Chargeable and High-Capacity Anode Materials for Lithium Ion Batteries
- Qian Cheng,
- Yasuharu Okamoto ⋯
- Yoshiaki Matsuo
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS1 NOV 2017Scientific Reports
Gas–solid interfacial modification of oxygen activity in layered oxide cathodes for lithium-ion batteries
Oxygen activity can play a vital role in determining charge transport properties of materials. Here, the authors demonstrate a method to create oxygen vacancies on layered oxides via a gas-solid interface reaction, leading to materials with enhanced energy and power densities for Li-ion batteries.
- Bao Qiu,
- Minghao Zhang ⋯
- Ying Shirley Meng
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS1 JUL 2016Nature Communications
Direct view on the phase evolution in individual LiFePO4nanoparticles during Li-ion battery cycling
Understanding phase transitions in electrodes under realistic conditions is important for future battery design. Here, the authors use synchrotron micro-beam diffraction to reveal the phase transition mechanism within individual particles of LiFePO4, revealing a…
- Xiaoyu Zhang,
- Martijn van Hulzen ⋯
- Marnix Wagemaker
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS23 SEP 2015Nature Communications
Visualizing nanoscale 3D compositional fluctuation of lithium in advanced lithium-ion battery cathodes
It is challenging to quantitatively diagnose the lithium-ion distribution in batteries. Here, the authors use laser-assisted atom probe tomography to probe the nanoscale compositional fluctuations of lithium ions in two popular lithium-ion battery cathodes before and after electrochemical cycling.
- A. Devaraj,
- M. Gu ⋯
- S. Thevuthasan
ARTICLEOPEN ACCESS14 AUG 2015Nature Communications
Reversible anionic redox chemistry in high-capacity layered-oxide electrodes
Cathodes for Li-ion batteries operate mainly via an insertion–deinsertion redox process involving cationic species but this mechanism does not account for the high capacities displayed by Li-rich layered oxides. The reactivity of high-capacity Li2Ru1−ySnyO3…
- M. Sathiya,
- G. Rousse ⋯
- J-M. Tarascon
ARTICLE14 JUL 2013Nature Materials
A new class of Solvent-in-Salt electrolyte for high-energy rechargeable metallic lithium batteries
Commercial lithium-ion batteries normally use a liquid electrolyte. Suo et al. show that a glassy-like electrolyte containing a high concentration of lithium salt leads to a substantially enhanced battery performance because of suppressed formation of lithium dendrites on the lithium metal anodes.
- Liumin Suo,
- Yong-Sheng Hu ⋯
- Liquan Chen
ARTICLE12 FEB 2013Nature Communications
A high-rate long-life Li4Ti5O12/Li[Ni0.45Co0.1Mn1.45]O4 lithium-ion battery
Advanced rechargeable lithium-ion batteries have potential applications in the renewable energy and sustainable road transport fields. Junget al. have developed a lithium battery that uses pre-existing concepts but has highly competitive energy densities, life span and cycling properties.
- Hun-Gi Jung,
- Min Woo Jang ⋯
- Bruno Scrosati
ARTICLE1 NOV 2011Nature Communications
Battery materials for ultrafast charging and discharging
Batteries are thought of as having high energy density but low power rates, while for fast-discharging supercapacitors the opposite is true. Byoungwoo Kang and Gerbrand Ceder have now developed a lithium-ion battery that challenges that assumption, discharging…
- Byoungwoo Kang &
- Gerbrand Ceder
LETTER12 MAR 2009Nature
Nano-sized transition-metal oxides as negative-electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries
- P. Poizot,
- S. Laruelle ⋯
- J-M. Tarascon
LETTER28 SEP 2000Nature
Nanocomposite polymer electrolytes for lithium batteries
- F. Croce,
- G. B. Appetecchi ⋯
- B. Scrosati
LETTER30 JUL 1998Nature
Synthesis of layered LiMnO2 as an electrode for rechargeable lithium batteries
- A. Robert Armstrong &
- Peter G. Bruce
LETTER6 JUN 1996Nature
Dimercaptan–polyaniline composite electrodes for lithium batteries with high energy density
- N. Oyama,
- T. Tatsuma ⋯
- T. Sotomura
LETTER16 FEB 1995Nature
