Hao Zhendong, Zhao Qing, Tang Jiadong, Zhang Qianqian, Liu Jingbing, Jin Yuhong, Wang Hao
Key Laboratory for New Functional Materials of Ministry of Education, Faculty of Materials and Manufacturing, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, P. R. China.
Mater Horiz. 2021 Jan 18;8(1):12-32. doi: 10.1039/d0mh01167c.
Lithium metal battery (LMB) is considered to be one of the most promising electrochemical energy storage devices due to the high theoretical specific capacity and the lowest redox potential of metallic lithium; however, some key issues caused by lithium dendrites on the lithium metal anode seriously hinder its real-world applications. As an indispensable part of LMBs, the separator could serve as a physical barrier to prevent direct contact of the two electrodes and control ionic transport in batteries; it is an ideal platform for the suppression of lithium dendrites. In this review, the mechanism of lithium dendrite nucleation and growth are firstly discussed and then some advanced techniques are introduced for the precise characterization of lithium dendrites. On the basis of dendritic nucleation and growth principle, several feasible strategies are summarized for suppressing lithium dendrites by utilizing functional separators, including providing a mechanical barrier, promoting homogeneous lithium deposition, and regulating ionic transport. Finally, some challenges and prospects are proposed to clear the future development of functional separators. We anticipate that this paper will provide a new insight into the design and construction of functional separators for addressing the issues of lithium dendrites in high-energy batteries.
锂金属电池（LMB）因其金属锂具有高理论比容量和最低氧化还原电位，被认为是最具前景的电化学储能装置之一；然而，锂金属阳极上锂枝晶引发的一些关键问题严重阻碍了其实际应用。作为LMB不可或缺的一部分，隔膜可作为物理屏障，防止两个电极直接接触并控制电池中的离子传输；它是抑制锂枝晶的理想平台。在这篇综述中，首先讨论了锂枝晶成核和生长的机制，然后介绍了一些用于精确表征锂枝晶的先进技术。基于枝晶成核和生长原理，总结了几种利用功能隔膜抑制锂枝晶的可行策略，包括提供机械屏障、促进锂均匀沉积和调节离子传输。最后，提出了一些挑战和前景，以明确功能隔膜的未来发展方向。我们预计本文将为设计和构建功能隔膜以解决高能电池中的锂枝晶问题提供新的见解。
