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To enhance battery safety, it is of utmost importance to develop non-flammable electrolytes. An emerging concept within this research field is the development of localized highly concentrated electrolytes (LHCEs). This type of liquid electrolyte relies on the concept of highly concentrated electrolytes (HCEs), but possesses lower viscosity, improved conductivity and reduced costs due to the addition of diluent solvents. In this work, two different hydrofluoroethers, i.e., bis(2,2,2-trifluoroethyl) ether (BTFE) and 1,1,2,2-tetrafluoroethyl 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl ether (TTE), are studied as diluents in a phosphate-based non-flammable liquid electrolyte. These two solvents were added to a highly concentrated electrolyte of 3.0 M lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) in triethyl phosphate (TEP) whereby the salt concentration was diluted to 1.5 M. The solvation structures of the HCE and LHCE were studied by means of Raman spectroscopy and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, where the latter was shown to be essential to provide more detailed insights. By using molecular dynamics simulations, it was shown that a highly concentrated Li+-TEP solvation sheath is formed, which can be protected by the diluents TTE and BTFE. These simulations have also clarified the energetic interaction between the components in the LHCE, which supports the experimental results from the viscosity and the NMR measurements. By performing non-covalent interaction analysis (NCI) it was possible to show the main contributions of the observed chemical shifts, which indicated that TTE has a stronger effect on the solvation structure than BTFE. Moreover, the electrochemical performances of the electrolytes were evaluated in half-cells (Li|NMC622, Li|graphite), full-cells (NMC622|graphite) and Li metal cells (Li|Cu). Galvanostatic cycling has shown that the TTE based electrolyte performs better in full-cells and Li-metal cells, compared to the BTFE based electrolyte. Operando pressure measurements have indicated that no significant amount of gases is evolved in NMC622|graphite cells using the here presented LHCEs, while a cell with 1.0 M LiFSI in TEP displayed clear formation of gaseous products in the first cycles. The formation of gaseous products is accompanied by solvent co-intercalation, as shown by operando XRD, and quick cell failure. This work provides insights on understanding the solvation structure of LHCEs and highlights the relationship between electrochemical performance and pressure evolution.

Avoiding the plating of metallic lithium on the graphite anode in lithium-ion batteries, potentially leading to aging and the formation of dendrites is critical for long term and safe operation of the cells. In this contribution, in operando detection of lithium plating via a fiber optical sensor placed at the surface of a graphite electrode is demonstrated. The detection is based on the modulation of light at the sensing region, which is in direct contact with the graphite particles. This is first demonstrated by the intentional deposition of lithium on a copper electrode, followed by experiments with graphite electrodes in pouch cells where plating is initiated both as a result of over-lithiation and excessive cycling rates. The plating resulted in a significant loss of light from the fiber, and the findings correlated well with previous experiments on the detection of sodium plating. The modulated light is also found to correlate well with the graphite staging via changes in the optical properties of the graphite during slow (de)intercalation of lithium ions. In a practical application, the fiber optical sensor may provide a battery management system (BMS) with input to optimize the charging procedure or to warn for cell failure.

Many of the challenges faced in the development of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and next-generation technologies stem from the (electro)chemical interactions between the electrolyte and electrodes during operation. It is at the electrode-electrolyte interfaces where ageing mechanisms can originate through, for example, the build-up of electrolyte decomposition products or the dissolution of metal ions. In pursuit of understanding these processes, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) has become one of the most important and powerful techniques in a large collection of available tools. As a highly surface-sensitive technique, it is often thought to be the most relevant in characterising the interfacial reactions that occur inside modern rechargeable batteries. This review tells the story of how XPS is employed in day-to-day battery research, as well as highlighting some of the most recent innovative in situ and operando methodologies developed to probe battery materials in ever greater detail. A large focus is placed not only on LIBs, but also on next-generation materials and future technologies, including sodium- and potassium-ion, multivalent, and solid-state batteries. The capabilities, limitations and practical considerations of XPS, particularly in relation to the investigation of battery materials, are discussed, and expectations for its use and development in the future are assessed.

Optical fiber sensors integrated into sodium-ion batteries could provide a battery management system (BMS) with information to identify early warning signs of plating, preventing catastrophic failure and maintaining safe operation during fast charging. This work shows the possibility of directly detecting plating of sodium metal in electrochemical cells by means of operando fiber optic evanescent wave (FOEW) spectroscopy. The results include measurements with FOEW sensors on bare copper substrates as well as on hard carbon anodes during operation in both half- and full-cell configurations. Full cells using hard carbon anodes and Prussian white cathodes with high areal capacities (>1.5 mAh cm(-2)) and integrated FOEW sensors are shown to cycle well in pouch cells. The results also include measurements to demonstrate plating on hard carbon during sodiation at different rates.

Fluorinated components in the form of salts, solvents and/or additives are a staple of electrolytes for high-performance Li- and Na-ion batteries, but this comes at a cost. Issues like potential toxicity, corrosivity and environmental concerns have sparked interest in fluorine-free alternatives. Of course, these electrolytes should be able to deliver performance that is on par with the electrolytes being in use today in commercial batteries. This begs the question: Are we there yet? This review outlines why fluorine is regarded as an essential component in battery electrolytes, along with the numerous problems it causes and possible strategies to eliminate it from Li- and Na-ion battery electrolytes. The examples provided demonstrate the possibilities of creating fully fluorine-free electrolytes with similar performance as their fluorinated counterparts, but also that there is still a lot of room for improvement, not least in terms of optimizing the fluorine-free systems independently of their fluorinated predecessors.

Among Prussian blue analogues (PBAs), NaxFe[Fe(CN)(6)](1-y)center dot nH(2)O is a highly attractive cathode material for sodium-ion batteries due to its high theoretical capacity of similar to 170 mA h g(-1) and inexpensive raw materials. However, concerns remain over its long-term electrochemical performance and structural factors which impact sources of resistance in the material and subsequently rate performance. Refined control of the [Fe(CN)(6)] vacancies and water content could help in realizing its market potential. In this context, we have studied a low-defect Berlin green (BG) Na0.30(5)Fe[Fe(CN)(6)](0.94(2))center dot nH(2)O with varied water content corresponding to 10, 8, 6, and 2 wt%. The impact of water on the electrochemical properties of BG was systematically investigated. The electrodes were cycled within a narrow voltage window of 3.15-3.8 V vs. Na/Na+ to avoid undesired phase transitions and side reactions while preserving the cubic structure. We demonstrate that thermal dehydration leads to a significantly improved cycling stability of over 300 cycles at 15 mA g(-1) with coulombic efficiency of >99.9%. In particular, the electrode with the lowest water content exhibited the fastest Na+-ion insertion/extraction as evidenced by the larger CV peak currents during successive scans compared to hydrated samples. The results provide fundamental insight for designing PBAs as electrode materials with enhanced electrochemical performance in energy storage applications.

The electrolyte solution of NaBOB in TEP is a low-cost, fluorine-free and flame-retardant electrolyte with ionic conductivity of 5 mS cm(-1), recently discovered to show promises for sodium-ion batteries. Here, the abilities of this electrolyte to effectively form a solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) was augmented with five common electrolyte additives of fluoroethylene carbonate (FEC), vinylene carbonate (VC), prop-1-ene-1,3-sultone (PES), 1,3,2-dioxathiolane 2,2-dioxide (DTD) and tris(trimethylsilyl)phosphite (TTSPi). Full-cells with electrodes of Prussian white and hard carbon and industrial mass loadings of >10 mg cm(-2) and electrolyte volumes of <5 ml g(-1) were used. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and pressure analysis were also deployed to investigate parasitic reactions. Cells using electrolyte additives of PES, PES+DTD and PES+TTSPi (3 wt%) showed significantly increased performance in terms of capacity retention and initial Coulombic efficiency as compared to additive-free NaBOB-TEP. The best cell retained 80% discharge capacity (89 mAh g(-1)) after 450 cycles, which is also significantly better than reference cells using 1 M NaPF6 in EC:DEC electrolyte. This study sheds light on opportunities to optimize the NaBOB-TEP electrolyte for full-cell sodium-ion batteries in order to move from low-mass-loading lab-scale electrodes to high mass loading electrodes aiming for commercialization of sodium-ion batteries.

Increasing concerns regarding the sustainability of lithium sources, due to their limited availability and consequent expected price increase, have raised awareness of the importance of developing alternative energy-storage candidates that can sustain the ever-growing energy demand. Furthermore, limitations on the availability of the transition metals used in the manufacturing of cathode materials, together with questionable mining practices, are driving development towards more sustainable elements. Given the uniformly high abundance and cost-effectiveness of sodium, as well as its very suitable redox potential (close to that of lithium), sodium-ion battery technology offers tremendous potential to be a counterpart to lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in different application scenarios, such as stationary energy storage and low-cost vehicles. This potential is reflected by the major investments that are being made by industry in a wide variety of markets and in diverse material combinations. Despite the associated advantages of being a drop-in replacement for LIBs, there are remarkable differences in the physicochemical properties between sodium and lithium that give rise to different behaviours, for example, different coordination preferences in compounds, desolvation energies, or solubility of the solid-electrolyte interphase inorganic salt components. This demands a more detailed study of the underlying physical and chemical processes occurring in sodium-ion batteries and allows great scope for groundbreaking advances in the field, from lab-scale to scale-up. This roadmap provides an extensive review by experts in academia and industry of the current state of the art in 2021 and the different research directions and strategies currently underway to improve the performance of sodium-ion batteries. The aim is to provide an opinion with respect to the current challenges and opportunities, from the fundamental properties to the practical applications of this technology.

For sodium-ion batteries, two pressing issues concerning electrolytes are flammability and compatibility with hard carbon anode materials. Non-flammable electrolytes that are sufficiently stable against hard carbon have—to the authors’ knowledge—previously only been obtained by either the use of high salt concentrations or additives. Herein, the authors present a simple, fluorine-free, and flame-retardant electrolyte which is compatible with hard carbon: 0.38 m sodium bis(oxalato)borate (NaBOB) in triethyl phosphate (TEP). A variety of techniques are employed to characterize the physical properties of the electrolyte, and to evaluate the electrochemical performance in full-cell sodium-ion batteries. The results reveal that the conductivity is sufficient for battery operation, no significant self-discharge occurs, and a satisfactory passivation is enabled by the electrolyte. In fact, a mean discharge capacity of 107 ± 4 mAh g−1 is achieved at the 1005th cycle, using Prussian white cathodes and hard carbon anodes. Hence, the studied electrolyte is a promising candidate for use in sodium-ion batteries.

Common battery electrolytes comprise organic carbonate solvents and fluorinated salts based on hexafluorophosphate (PF6-) anions. However, these electrolytes suffer from high flammability, limited operating temperature window, and high cost. To address those issues, we here propose a fluorine-free electrolyte based on sodium bis(oxalate)borate (NaBOB). Although lithium bis(oxalate)borate (LiBOB) has previously been investigated for lithium-ion batteries, NaBOB was considered too insoluble in organic solvents to be used in practice. Here, we show that NaBOB can be dissolved in mixtures of N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and trimethyl phosphate (TMP) and in each sole solvent. NMP provides higher solubility of NaBOB with a concentration of almost 0.7 M, resulting in an ionic conductivity up to 8.83 mS cm(-1) at room temperature. The physical and electrochemical properties of electrolytes based on NaBOB salt dissolved in NMP and TMP solvents and their binary mixtures are here investigated. The results include the thermal behavior of the sole solvents and their mixtures, flammability tests, NaBOB solubility, and ionic conductivity measurements of the electrolyte mixtures. Full-cell sodium-ion batteries based on hard carbon anodes and Prussian white cathodes were evaluated at room temperature and 55 degrees C using the aforementioned electrolytes. The results show a much improved performance compared to conventional electrolytes of 1 M NaPF6 in carbonate solvents at high currents and elevated temperatures. The proposed electrolytes provide a high ionic conductivity at a wide temperature range from room temperature to -60 degrees C as NMP-TMP mixtures have low freezing points. The flammability tests indicate that NaBOB in NMP-TMP electrolytes are nonflammable when the electrolyte contains more than 30 vol % TMP.