Highly Concentrated Electrolyte towards Enhanced Energy Density and Cycling Life of Dual‐Ion Battery

Abstract

Dual-ion batteries (DIBs) have attracted much attention owing to their low cost, high voltage, and environmental friendliness. As the source of active ions during the charging/discharging process, the electrolyte plays a critical role in the performance of DIBs, including capacity, energy density, and cycling life. However, most used electrolyte systems based on the LiPF₆ salt demonstrate unsatisfactory performance in DIBs. We have successfully developed a 7.5 mol kg^-1 lithium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (LiFSI) in a carbonate electrolyte system. Compared with diluted electrolytes, this highly concentrated electrolyte exhibits several advantages: 1) enhanced intercalation capacity and cycling stability of the graphite cathode, 2) optimized structural stability of the Al anode, and 3) significantly increased battery energy density. A proof-of-concept DIB based on this concentrated electrolyte exhibits a discharge capacity of 94.0 mAh g^-1 at 200 mA g^-1 and 96.8 % capacity retention after 500 cycles. By counting both the electrode materials and electrolyte, the energy density of this DIB reaches up to ≈180 Wh kg^-1 , which is among the best performances of DIBs reported to date.