Work

Unveiling the high lithiophilicity of lithiated hard carbon for lithium metal battery anodes

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Lithium metal batteries offer high theoretical capacity but suffer from dendrite growth and surface instability. In this study, composite electrodes are prepared by integrating lithium metal powder (LMP) with carbon hosts of varying graphitization degrees, including hard carbon (HC), soft carbon (SC), natural graphite (NG), and artificial graphite (AG). Among them, the LMP/HC electrode exhibits the best electrochemical performance, originating from the defect-rich nature of hard carbon, where abundant dangling-bond-associated sites serve as energetically favorable lithium adsorption and nucleation centers, enabling uniform lithium deposition. The LMP/HC_7DS electrode shows a remarkably low nucleation overpotential of 14.5 mV, compared to 239.0 mV for bare LMP, resulting in a prolonged cycle life of 1000 h versus 350 h for bare LMP in symmetric cells (1 mA/cm 2 , 1 mAh/cm 2 ). In full-cell tests at a 3C rate, LMP/HC_7DS retains 123.4 mAh/g with 98.6% capacity retention at the 1700th cycle, far outperforming bare LMP. While SC outperforms graphite-based hosts overall, it still lags behind HC. These findings demonstrate that lithium associated with defect sites or adsorbed on the surface of amorphous carbon enhances lithiophilicity, suppresses dendrite formation, and significantly improves the long-term stability of lithium metal batteries.

Source: Journal of Power Sources

DOI: 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2026.239539

Authors: Ju-yeong Lee, Ju-yeong Lee, Yong-seok Choi, Jae-won Lee, Jae-won Lee

Institution: Dankook University

Language: English

Topic: Advanced Battery Materials and Technologies

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Affordable and clean energy

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,230