Achilles' Heel of Lithium-Air Batteries: Lithium Carbonate

Abstract

The lithium-air battery (LAB) is envisaged as an ultimate energy storage device because of its highest theoretical specific energy among all known batteries. However, parasitic reactions bring about vexing issues on the efficiency and longevity of the LAB, among which the formation and decomposition of lithium carbonate Li₂ CO₃ is of paramount importance. The discovery of Li₂ CO₃ as the main discharge product in carbonate-based electrolytes once brought researchers to "the end of the idyll" in the early 2010s. In the past few years, tremendous efforts have been made to understand the formation and decomposition mechanisms of Li₂ CO₃ , as well as to conceive novel chemical/material strategies to suppress the Li₂ CO₃ formation and to facilitate the Li₂ CO₃ decomposition. Moreover, the study on Li₂ CO₃ in LABs is opening up a new research field in energy technology. Considering the rapid development and innumerous emerging issues, it is timely to recapitulate the current understandings, define the ambiguities and the scientific gaps, and discuss topics of high priority for future research, which is the aim of this Minireview.

Keywords: electrochemistry; electrolytes; energy storage materials; lithium carbonate; lithium-air batteries.