Congener-derived template to construct lithiophilic organic-inorganic layer/interphase for high volumetric capacity dendrite-free Li metal batteries

The development of lithium-metal batteries (LMBs) is seriously restricted by the out-of-control dendrites growth and infinite volume expansion. Herein, a pervasive organic-inorganic layer construction strategy is reported for the composite lithium metal anode with congener-derived organic-inorganic solid electrolyte interphase (SEI). In this strategy, the organic-inorganic Ag@polydopamine (Ag@PDA) layer is coated on the arbitrary substrates by a simple two-step method. The thin and stable congener-derived SEI is insitu formed with fewer inorganic components and more organic components during charging/discharging. The polydopamine with sufficient adhesion groups and lithiophilic Ag layer realize near-zero nucleation overpotential during lithium deposition. The low interface resistance and stable lithium deposition are achieved. Moreover, the practical areal and volumetric capacities of the composite anode with threedimensional copper (3DCu) as the substrate are 10 mAh/cm2 and 1538 mAh/cm3 ( vs. the mass of anode). The symmetrical cell shows very low polarization voltage (10 mV) and more than 2500 h cycles life at 1 mA/cm2 (1 mAh/cm2 ). The LiNi0.8 Co0.1 Mn0.1 O2 (NCM811)-based full cells show improved capacity retention (82%) after 100 cycles at 0.5 C. The modified lithiophilic anode with congener-derived interphase provides a promising strategy to realize the next-generation dendrite-free LMBs. (c) 2024 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.