Volume 6 Issue 6, June 2021

Stopping climate change requires revolutionary transformations in industry and agriculture. Ahead of several major climate meetings this year, policymakers struggling to measure progress on climate change should focus less on global emissions, which will be slow to change, and more on technological advances in pioneering niches.

Oxygen loss is an elusive phenomenon that accompanies oxygen redox in lithium-rich layered oxides in batteries. Now, multi-length-scale characterization reveals that oxygen originating from the oxide bulk is eventually released after prolonged cycling.

Anode-free lithium metal batteries with liquid electrolytes could become a drop-in solution for making higher energy density and lower cost batteries with existing production facilities. Now, a synergistic approach is brought forward that bolsters the anode-free cells’ limited lithium inventory extending the cells’ cyclability.

The performance of electrocatalysts depends on material properties that may differ spatially even within a single particle. Now, a combination of operando microscopy techniques is used to correlate morphology and metal oxidation state with local activity of an oxygen evolution catalyst, which may help to guide future catalyst design.

The efficiency and stability of perovskite photovoltaic modules lag far behind those of small-area devices. By carefully engineering the composition of the perovskite layer to suppress defect formation, researchers now demonstrate mini-modules that are nearly as efficient as small-area cells with 1,000-hour stability under operation.

Electrification of truck fleets has been perceived as costly both in terms of vehicle and charging infrastructure investments. A new study shows that, with the right charging strategy, electrification of a short-haul delivery fleet does not require major investments in the electric grid substations.

Performance assessments of redox flow batteries (RFBs) can be challenging due to inconsistency in testing methods and conditions. Here the authors summarize major performance metrics of RFBs, analyse their degradation mechanisms and propose testing protocols for benchmarking.

Zinc–air batteries are viewed as a sustainable storage technology, but their commercialization requires a genuine performance leap forwards from the laboratory scale. Here the authors report a cell-level design and demonstrate an ampere-hour pouch cell with exceptionally high energy density and cycle lifespan.

Molecular design of acceptor and donor molecules has enabled major progress in organic photovoltaics. Li et al. show that branched alkyl chains in non-fullerene acceptors allow favourable morphology in the active layer, enabling a certified device efficiency of 17.9%.

Atomically dispersed platinum electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction promise minimized platinum usage, but catalytic activity and selectivity are often low due to unfavourable O₂ adsorption. To circumvent this issue, Gao and colleagues load platinum onto α-Fe₂O₃, making a highly active and stable catalyst with dispersed Pt–Fe pair sites.

The role of intragrain planar defects in halide perovskite solar cell devices remains elusive. Now, Li et al. tune the composition of the perovskite layer to minimize the planar defect density and observe an improvement in the device performance.

Methylammonium-free perovskite solar cells have achieved promising efficiency and thermal stability yet iodide migration limits their operational stability. Deng and colleagues show that an excess of formamidinium or caesium iodide precursor suppresses iodide vacancies preventing ion migration and eventually the generation of hole traps during device operation.

Oxygen release in Li-rich layered oxides is of both fundamental and practical interest in batteries, but a varied mechanistic understanding exists. Here the authors evaluate the extent of oxygen release over extended cycles and present a comprehensive picture of the phenomenon that unifies the current explanations.

Anode-free batteries offer high-energy prospects but suffer from poor cycling stability due to limited lithium sources. Here, the authors preload lithium oxide onto a high-energy cathode in initial-anode-free cells, which substantially improves the cyclability while maintaining high energy density.

There have been objections to onshore wind turbines for aesthetic reasons, although a quantitative methodology to provide some assessment of the risk of such public objections has been missing. McKenna et al. develop a method to use geotagged photographs of landscapes to assess potential future public acceptance of projects.

Increasing attention is being paid to the electrification of trucks, in particular for short-haul operations. Borlaug et al. simulate depot charging load profiles based on real-world operating schedules to explore future charging requirements and assess the likely distribution substation upgrades needed to support them.

Li₄Ti₅O₁₂ spinel was initially investigated as a cathode material for a rechargeable lithium battery. It was later successfully exploited as an anode by the lithium-ion battery industry to provide safe, high power but low energy density cells relative to those with graphite/carbon anodes.