Low-temperature fusion fabrication of Li-Cu alloy anode with in situ formed 3D framework of inert LiCux nanowires for excellent Li storage performance

Weishang Jia; Yuchi Liu; Zihao Wang; Fangzhu Qing; Jingze Li; Yi Wang; Ruijuan Xiao; Aijun Zhou; Guobao Li; Xiqian Yu; Yong-Sheng Hu; Hong Li; Zhaoxiang Wang; Xuejie Huang; Liquan Chen

doi:10.1016/j.scib.2020.07.012

Low-temperature fusion fabrication of Li-Cu alloy anode with in situ formed 3D framework of inert LiCu_x nanowires for excellent Li storage performance

Sci Bull (Beijing). 2020 Nov 30;65(22):1907-1915. doi: 10.1016/j.scib.2020.07.012. Epub 2020 Jul 7.

Authors

Weishang Jia¹, Yuchi Liu¹, Zihao Wang¹, Fangzhu Qing¹, Jingze Li², Yi Wang³, Ruijuan Xiao³, Aijun Zhou¹, Guobao Li⁴, Xiqian Yu³, Yong-Sheng Hu⁵, Hong Li³, Zhaoxiang Wang³, Xuejie Huang³, Liquan Chen³

Affiliations

¹ School of Materials and Energy, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, China.
² School of Materials and Energy, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, China. Electronic address: lijingze@uestc.edu.cn.
³ Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China.
⁴ College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
⁵ Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China. Electronic address: yshu@iphy.ac.cn.

PMID: 36738056
DOI: 10.1016/j.scib.2020.07.012

Abstract

The commercialization of rechargeable Li metal batteries is hindered by dendrite growth and volumetric variation. Herein, we report a Li-rich dual-phase Li-Cu alloy with built-in 3D conductive skeleton to replace conventional planar Li anode. The Li-Cu alloy is simply prepared by fusion of Li and Cu metals at a relatively low-temperature of 500 °C, followed by a cooling process where phase-segregation leads to metallic Li phase distributed in the network of LiCu_x solid solution phase. Different from the common Li alloy, the electrochemical alloying reaction between Li and Cu metals is not observed. Therefore, the lithiophilic LiCu_x nanowires guides conformal plating of Li and the porous framework provides superior dimensional stability for the anode. This unique ferroconcrete-like structure of Li-Cu alloy enables dendrite-free Li plating for an expanded cycling lifetime. Constructing a new type of Li alloy with in situ formed electrochemically inactive framework is a promising and easily scaled-up strategy toward practical application of Li metal anodes.

Keywords: 3D nanostructure; Lithium dendrite; Lithium metal anode; Lithium-copper alloy; Nanowire.