Electrolyte additive offers lithium battery performance breakthrough

Co-first author Sha Tan, left, and Brookhaven chemist Enyuan Hu at the IOS beamline at NSLS-II, where part of the research was conducted. Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory
A team of researchers led by chemists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory has learned that an electrolyte additive allows stable high-voltage cycling of nickel-rich layered cathodes. Their work could lead to improvements in the energy density of lithium batteries that power electric vehicles.