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Water, an unwelcome guest in current battery industry, has been strictly prohibited in almost all the battery production procedures. In particular, the requirement for an extremely low water content (below 20 ppm) in electrolyte has necessitated the use of water‐free raw materials and ultradry conditions, which resulting in significantly higher material cost, energy consumption, and production complexity. Here, it is shown that lithium nitrate (LiNO3) can efficiently restore water‐containing electrolyte for Li metal full batteries through a simple and scalable approach. The dual‐functional NO3− anion not only exhibits strong interaction with water molecules which suppresses the hydrolysis of hexafluorophosphate anion, but also contributes to a robust solid‐electrolyte interphase (SEI) that improves the electrochemical reversibility of Li metal plating and stripping process. These enable the first practical Li metal/LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 full cell with a negative/positive electrode capacity (N/P) ratio of 3.8 using a water‐containing electrolyte, which delivers a high energy density of 511 Wh kg−1 and impressive cycling stability of 240 cycles. Remarkably, the introduction of LiNO3 can tolerate moist raw materials for electrolyte preparation, and revitalize moist electrolytes after 5‐day storage, which provides a new paradigm to overcome the water hazard in the current battery industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable batteries with higher energy densities and sustainability have been intensively pursued in the past decades, driven by the wide applications such as electric vehicle industry and grid energy storage. As an ancient battery system born ≈140 years ago, chlorine (Cl)–based batteries have been actively revisited in recent years, because of their impressive electrochemical performance with the low–cost and sustainable features, making them highly attractive candidates for energy storage applications. In this Perspective, the historical development of Cl–based batteries is reviewed at first, focusing on the progresses in new battery chemistries enabled by various Cl–based electrolytes. An emphasis is then placed on the unique cathode and anode chemistries enabled by rational regulation of Cl–based electrolytes. At last, the challenges and prospects, particularly the obstacles for real–world applications of state–of–the–art Cl–based batteries are introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable sodium/chlorine (Na/Cl2) batteries are emerging candidates for sustainable energy storage owing to their superior energy densities and the high abundance of Na and Cl elements. However, their practical applications have been plagued by the poor rate performance (e.g., a maximum discharge current density of 150 mA g−1), as the widely used carbon nanosphere cathodes show both sluggish electron‐ion transport and reaction kinetics. Here, by mimicking the sufficient mass and energy transport in a sponge, we report a bicontinuous‐structured carbon cubosome with heteroatomic doping, which allows efficient Na+ and electron transport and promotes Cl2 adsorption and conversion, thus unlocking ultrahigh‐rate Na/Cl2 batteries, e.g., a maximum discharge current density of 16,000 mA g−1 that is more than two orders of magnitude higher than previous reports. The optimized solid–liquid–gas (carbon–electrolyte–Cl2) triple interfaces further contribute to a maximum reversible capacity and cycle life of 2,000 mAh g−1 and 250 cycles, respectively. This study establishes a universal approach for improving the sluggish kinetics of conversion‐type battery reactions, and provides a new paradigm to resolve the long‐standing dilemma between high energy and power densities in energy storage devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium/thionyl chloride (Li/SOCl2) primary batteries are appealing power solutions because of their remarkable electrochemical performances. However, their mass applications are hindered by the challenges in sustainability, cost and safety concerns owing to the employed Li chemistry. Here, magnesium (Mg) chemistry is shown as a promising alternative through synergistic optimization of electrolyte solvation and electrode reaction kinetics. The first Mg/SOCl2 primary battery yields surprisingly high specific capacities up to ≈14 000 mAh g−1 at a decent discharge voltage of ≈1.67 V, which outperforms the state‐of‐the‐art Mg‐based primary batteries. In addition, it retains almost 100% of the original capacity after 20‐day reservation. The impressive battery performances are originated from the stabilized MgCl2 formation on high‐surface‐area carbon cathode and suppressed Mg anode corrosion via the Mg‐induced solvation effect. Mg/SOCl2 primary batteries are promising candidates for low‐cost and recyclable power supplies, and they thus open new avenues for the development of sustainable battery chemistries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rechargeable sodium/chlorine (Na/Cl 2 ) batteries are emerging candidates for sustainable energy storage owing to their superior energy densities and the high abundance of Na and Cl elements. However, their practical applications have been plagued by the poor rate performance (e.g., a maximum discharge current density of 150 mA g -1 ), as the widely used carbon nanosphere cathodes show both sluggish electron-ion transport and reaction kinetics. Here, by mimicking the sufficient mass and energy transport in a sponge, we report a bicontinuous-structured carbon cubosome with heteroatomic doping, which allows efficient Na + and electron transport and promotes Cl 2 adsorption and conversion, thus unlocking ultrahigh-rate Na/Cl 2 batteries, e.g., a maximum discharge current density of 16,000 mA g -1 that is more than two orders of magnitude higher than previous reports. The optimized solid-liquid-gas (carbon-electrolyte-Cl 2 ) triple interfaces further contribute to a maximum reversible capacity and cycle life of 2,000 mAh g -1 and 250 cycles, respectively. This study establishes a universal approach for improving the sluggish kinetics of conversion-type battery reactions, and provides a new paradigm to resolve the long-standing dilemma between high energy and power densities in energy storage devices., (© 2023 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)