Tuesday, 11 October 2022: 17:00
Room 216 (The Hilton Atlanta)
Despite the promise of sodium electrochemistry at ambient temperature, the performance of sodium metal batteries in frigid environments is hindered by high internal resistance and unstable solid electrolyte interphase (SEI), which highly depends on the electrolyte composition. Here we present our recent efforts in tuning the electrolyte composition, which enables the formation of a protective SEI on sodium metal electrode in cold environments. Long-term sodium metal cycling is demonstrated at low temperatures down to −80°C. Coupled experimental characterization (such as, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, cryogenic transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy) and density functional theory calculations reveal the underlying mechanism behind the superior performance.