Celebrate Earth Week 2024 With Resources from ACS Publications Journals

Chemists Celebrate Earth Week is an annual event that takes place alongside Earth Day and celebrates the positive and crucial role that chemistry plays in the world.

This year, from April 21-27, we are turning our focus to all things batteries! To help celebrate this year's theme, "Get a Charge Out of Chemistry," ACS Publications invites you to explore the chemistry of batteries and their role in environmental sustainability with a curated selection of research and educational resources below.

Batteries are becoming increasingly vital in our rapidly evolving digital world. The content below showcases recent advancements and challenges in the field, providing insights into how chemists are working to advance sustainable battery technology and maintain a balance of efficiency, safety, and environmental impact.

Educational Resources and Tools from the Journal of Chemical Education

Through this selection of articles, students can examine the properties and uses of batteries, including fabricating batteries and investigating electrochemistry, as well as experiment with solar cells. With 101 volumes of interesting material on a wide variety of topics, the Journal of Chemical Education helps connect the classroom experience to the greater world.

Recently Published Battery Research from ACS Journals

Accounts of Materials Research

Toward Practical Li–CO₂ Batteries: Mechanisms, Catalysts, and Perspectives
Xiaowei Mu, Ping He*, and Haoshen Zhou
DOI: 10.1021/accountsmr.3c00266

Hybrid Organosulfur Cathode Materials for Rechargeable Lithium Batteries
Xiuqing Zhang, Wei Guo*, and Yongzhu Fu*
DOI: 10.1021/accountsmr.3c00248

Advanced Electrolytes for Rechargeable Lithium Metal Batteries with High Safety and Cycling Stability
Yuli Huang, Bowei Cao, Zhen Geng*, and Hong Li*
DOI: 10.1021/accountsmr.3c00232

Finding the Ideal Electrocatalyst Match for Sulfur Redox Reactions in Li-S Batteries
Jiawen Zhu, Song Jin*, Xianghua Kong*, and Hengxing Ji*
DOI: 10.1021/accountsmr.3c00167

Space-Confined Electrochemical Reactions and Materials for High-Energy-Density Batteries
Juan Zhang, Yi-Fan Tian, Sen Xin*, and Yu-Guo Guo*
DOI: 10.1021/accountsmr.3c00017

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces

Understanding Catalytic Mechanisms and Cathode Interface Kinetics in Nonaqueous Mg–CO₂ Batteries
Rahul Jayan and Md Mahbubul Islam*
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c09599

Bi Nanosheets on Porous Carbon Cloth Composites for Ultrastable Flexible Nickel–Bismuth Batteries
Hongqi Shi, Cunduan Zhang, Jianming Zhan, Jiajia Chen*, Xinxing Li, Zhengyuan Gao, and Zhida Li
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.3c05666

ACS Catalysis

Role of Catalytic Conversions of Ethylene Carbonate, Water, and HF in Forming the Solid-Electrolyte Interphase of Li-Ion Batteries
Milena Martins, Dominik Haering, Justin G. Connell, Hao Wan, Katrine L. Svane, Bostjan Genorio, Pedro Farinazzo Bergamo Dias Martins, Pietro P. Lopes, Brian Gould, Filippo Maglia, Roland Jung, Vojislav Stamenkovic, Ivano E. Castelli, Nenad M. Markovic, Jan Rossmeisl, and Dusan Strmcnik*
DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.3c01531

Recognition and Application of Catalysis in Secondary Rechargeable Batteries
Changhao Wang, Xiaohong Wu, Yilong Chen, Baodan Zhang, Haiyan Luo, Zhengang Li, Yawen Yan, Zixin Wu, Kai Fang, Yu Qiao*, and Shi-Gang Sun*
DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.3c02455

Energy-Transfer-Powered Sultine Synthesis
Zhengxi Deng, Zhiming Zhu, Zhengzheng Ru, Xiuyuan Zou, Xinke Ouyang, Helian Li, Xiaoxiao Yang, Pan Zhou, Sisi Tian, Xingyu Ma, Renjie Song, Qing Sun*, Chenxiao Lin*, and Chao Shu*
DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.3c03367

ACS Central Science

Promising Cathode Materials for Sodium-Ion Batteries from Lab to Application
Shitan Xu, Huanhuan Dong, Dan Yang, Chun Wu, Yu Yao, Xianhong Rui, Shulei Chou*, and Yan Yu*
DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.3c01022

A Layered Organic Cathode for High-Energy, Fast-Charging, and Long-Lasting Li-Ion Batteries
Tianyang Chen, Harish Banda, Jiande Wang, Julius J. Oppenheim, Alessandro Franceschi, and Mircea Dincǎ*
DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.3c01478

Electrolyte Engineering with Carboranes for Next-Generation Mg Batteries
Anton W. Tomich, Jianjun Chen, Veronica Carta, Juchen Guo*, and Vincent Lavallo*
DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.3c01176

Toward High Performance Anodes for Sodium-Ion Batteries: From Hard Carbons to Anode-Free Systems
Zhaoguo Liu, Ziyang Lu*, Shaohua Guo, Quan-Hong Yang, and Haoshen Zhou*
DOI: acscentsci.3c00301

Polyanionic Cathode Materials for Practical Na-Ion Batteries toward High Energy Density and Long Cycle Life
Chunliu Xu, Junmei Zhao*, Chao Yang, and Yong-Sheng Hu
DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.3c00907

ACS Energy Letters

Opportunities and Challenges of Lithium Ion Batteries in Automotive Applications
Alvaro Masias*, James Marcicki, and William A. Paxton
DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.0c02584

Emerging Era of Electrolyte Solvation Structure and Interfacial Model in Batteries
Haoran Cheng, Qujiang Sun, Leilei Li, Yeguo Zou, Yuqi Wang, Tao Cai, Fei Zhao, Gang Liu, Zheng Ma, Wandi Wahyudi, Qian Li*, and Jun Ming*
DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.1c02425

Anion–Diluent Pairing for Stable High-Energy Li Metal Batteries
Chunnan Zhu, Chuangchao Sun, Ruhong Li, Suting Weng, Liwu Fan, Xuefeng Wang, Lixin Chen, Malachi Noked*, and Xiulin Fan*
DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.2c00232

Zn-Ion Transporting, In Situ Formed Robust Solid Electrolyte Interphase for Stable Zinc Metal Anodes over a Wide Temperature Range
Peixun Xiong, Yingbo Kang, Nan Yao, Xiang Chen, Haiyan Mao, Woo-Sung Jang, David M. Halat, Zhong-Heng Fu, Min-Hyoung Jung, Hu Young Jeong, Young-Min Kim, Jeffrey A. Reimer, Qiang Zhang, and Ho Seok Park*
DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.3c00154

Boosting the Low-Temperature Performance for Li-Ion Batteries in LiPF6-Based Local High-Concentration Electrolyte
Ge Song, Zonglin Yi, Fangyuan Su*, Lijing Xie, Zhenbing Wang, Xian-Xian Wei, Guoning Xu*, and Cheng-Meng Chen*
DOI: 10.1021/acsenergylett.2c02903

ACS Omega

Nanostructured Design Cathode Materials for Magnesium-Ion Batteries
Mohsin Javed, Afzal Shah*, Jan Nisar, Suniya Shahzad, Abdul Haleem, and Iltaf Shah*
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c06576

Review of Transition Metal Chalcogenides and Halides as Electrode Materials for Thermal Batteries and Secondary Energy Storage Systems
Premnath Muthu*, Sudha Rajagopal, Devishree Saju, Vidyashri Kesavan, Arun Dellus, Loganathan Sadhasivam*, and Naveen Chandrasekaran*
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c08809

Atomic Insights into the S Poisoning Effects of Single-Atom Catalysts in Li–S Batteries
Chang Li, Haibo Luo, Fengyu Li*, and Fen Li*
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c04166

Enhancing the Performance of Lithium–Oxygen Batteries with Quasi-Solid Polymer Electrolytes
SiXin Jia, FengQuan Liu*, JinXin Xue, Rui Wang, Hong Huo, JianJun Zhou*, and Lin Li*
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c02917

SOC Estimation of Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries Based on the ISCSO-ELM Algorithm
Dong Xiao*, Boyan Li, Jiawei Shan, Zelin Yan, and Jie Huang
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c06113

Chemical & Biomedical Imaging

Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy for Chemical Imaging and Understanding Redox Activities of Battery Materials
Lyndi E. Strange, Xiao Li, Eric Wornyo, Md Ashaduzzaman, and Shanlin Pan*
DOI: 10.1021/cbmi.3c00014

Chemical Reviews

Tackling the Challenges of Enzymatic (Bio)Fuel Cells
Xinxin Xiao, Hong-qi Xia, Ranran Wu, Lu Bai, Lu Yan, Edmond Magner, Serge Cosnier, Elisabeth Lojou*, Zhiguang Zhu*, and Aihua Liu*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00115

Mediated Fuel Cells: Soluble Redox Mediators and Their Applications to Electrochemical Reduction of O₂ and Oxidation of H₂, Alcohols, Biomass, and Complex Fuels
Colin W. Anson and Shannon S. Stahl*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00717

Energy & Fuels

High-Voltage “Single-Crystal” Cathode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries
Yinzhong Wang, Errui Wang, Xu Zhang, and Haijun Yu*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.0c03608

Experimental Investigation of the Combustion Properties of an Average Thermal Runaway Gas Mixture from Li-Ion Batteries
Olivier Mathieu*, Claire M. Grégoire, Mattias A. Turner, Darryl J. Mohr, Sulaiman A. Alturaifi, James C. Thomas, and Eric L. Petersen
DOI: 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.1c04057

Gas Sensing Technology for the Detection and Early Warning of Battery Thermal Runaway: A Review
Ze Wang, Lei Zhu, Jianwei Liu, Jianan Wang*, and Wei Yan
DOI: 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.2c01121

Optimization of the Cooling Performance of Symmetric Battery Thermal Management Systems at High Discharge Rates
Zixiao Feng, Jiapei Zhao*, Changwei Guo, Satyam Panchal, Yuan Xu, Jinliang Yuan*, Roydon Fraser, and Michael Fowler
DOI: 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.3c00690

Efficient Recovery of Valuable Metals from Lithium-Ion Battery Cathodes Using Phytic Acid-Based Deep Eutectic Solvents at a Mild Temperature
Yu Chen*, Chong Liu, Yanlong Wang, Yurun Tian, Yuting Li, Minghui Feng, Yuting Guo, Jingru Han, and Tiancheng Mu*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.energyfuels.3c00313

JACS Au

Trade-off between Zincophilicity and Zincophobicity: Toward Stable Zn-Based Aqueous Batteries
Hongpeng Li, Ruizheng Zhao, Wanhai Zhou, Lipeng Wang, Wei Li, Dongyuan Zhao, and Dongliang Chao*
DOI: 10.1021/jacsau.3c00292

Anion-Induced Interfacial Liquid Layers on LiCoO₂ in Salt-in-Water Lithium-Ion Batteries
Hyunjeong Oh, Seung-Jae Shin, Eunjin Choi, Hirona Yamagishi, Toshiaki Ohta, Naoaki Yabuuchi, Hun-Gi Jung, Hyungjun Kim*, and Hye Ryung Byon*
DOI: 10.1021/jacsau.3c00061

Journal of the American Chemical Society

Covalent Organic Frameworks as Model Materials for Fundamental and Mechanistic Understanding of Organic Battery Design Principles
Sattwick Haldar*, Andreas Schneemann, and Stefan Kaskel*
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c01131

Electron Localization in Rationally Designed Pt₁Pd Single-Atom Alloy Catalyst Enables High-Performance Li–O₂ Batteries
Erhuan Zhang, Anqi Dong, Kun Yin, Chenliang Ye, Yin Zhou, Chuan Tan, Menggang Li, Xiaobo Zheng, Yu Wang, Xiangwen Gao*, Hongbo Li*, Dingsheng Wang*, and Shaojun Guo*
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c12734

Enabling High-Performance All-Solid-State Batteries via Guest Wrench in Zeolite Strategy
Xiwen Chi, Malin Li, Xiao Chen, Jun Xu, Xin Yin, Shanghua Li, Ziyue Jin, Zhaodi Luo, Xingxing Wang, Dechen Kong, Meng Han, Ji-Jing Xu, Zonghang Liu, Donghai Mei, Jiaao Wang*, Graeme Henkelman, and Jihong Yu*
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c07858

Fluoride-Rich, Organic–Inorganic Gradient Interphase Enabled by Sacrificial Solvation Shells for Reversible Zinc Metal Batteries
Wangwang Xu, Jiantao Li*, Xiaobin Liao, Lei Zhang, Xiaoman Zhang, Chaozheng Liu, Khalil Amine, Kangning Zhao*, and Jun Lu*
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c06523

Lewis Acid-Induced Reversible Disproportionation of TEMPO Enables Aqueous Aluminum Radical Batteries
Shangxu Jiang, Yihui Xie, Yuan Xie, Li-Juan Yu, Xiaoqing Yan, Fu-Gang Zhao, Chanaka J. Mudugamuwa, Michelle L. Coote*, Zhongfan Jia*, and Kai Zhang*
DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c04203

Langmuir

P-Doped Cotton Stalk Carbon for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries and Lithium–Sulfur Batteries
Yanbin Wei, Wenhua Cheng, Yudai Huang*, Zhenjie Liu, Rui Sheng, Xingchao Wang, Dianzeng Jia*, and Xincun Tang
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c01336

Jute-Fiber Precursor-Derived Low-Cost Sustainable Hard Carbon with Varying Micro/Mesoporosity and Distinct Storage Mechanisms for Sodium-Ion and Potassium-Ion Batteries
Nagmani, Prakhar Verma, and Sreeraj Puravankara*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c02575

Porous Ni₃S₂–Co₉S₈ Carbon Aerogels Derived from Carrageenan/NiCo-MOF Hydrogels as an Efficient Electrocatalyst for Oxygen Evolution in Rechargeable Zn–Air Batteries
Nagmani, Prakhar Verma, and Sreeraj Puravankara*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c00805

Regulating the Anode Corrosion by a Tryptophan Derivative for Alkaline Al–Air Batteries
Yue Huang, Lei Guo*, Qiao Zhang, Wei Shi*, Wei Feng, Faheem Abbas, Xingwen Zheng, Senlin Leng, Yujie Qiang, and Viswanathan S. Saji
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c00032

Opportunities and Challenges in the Development of Layered Positive Electrode Materials for High-Energy Sodium Ion Batteries: A Computational Perspective
Priti Singh and Mudit Dixit*
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c02973