A graphdiyne analogue for dendrite-free lithium metal anode

The inhabitation of lithium dendrites growth was very important for the safety of lithium battery. Coating the lithium battery negative electrode by a thin film with proper channels can inhibit the growth of lithium dendrites through tuning the transportation rate of lithium ions. This work showed that the introduction of proper substituents into graphdiyne (GDY) can change the coordination environment of the diyne groups with the metal ions, thus the benefits of cation-π interactions and the intrinsic channels formed in GDY can be combined to tune the ion conduction and atomic-level selective transport, which can protect the electrode structure, inhibit side reactions at the interface, inhibit the shuttle of active materials, and even adjust the electrode performance. Combined with theory calculation, solution studies of the model compound toward lithium ions revealed the ion binding sites of this benzene substituted graphdiyne. The lithium battery with negative electrode coated with Ben-GDY film has long cycle (over 800 h) stability at current densities of 1 mAh cm−2 and 0.5 mAh cm−2.