Electrochemical Conversion Reactions and Their Applications for Rechargeable Batteries

Electrochemical conversion reactions have received considerable interest as a new redox mechanism for constructing high capacity electrodes of rechargeable batteries. Without strict restrictions on the crystalline structure of the host lattice and the size of the associated ions, conversion reactions can take place in a variety of different metal compounds with different metal cations and deliver much higher reversible capacities through full utilization of all the oxidation states of the transition-metal compounds, opening up a new avenue for developing high capacity materials of rechargeable batteries. This paper briefly reviews the state of the art and challenges of conversion electrodes and also discusses the possible strategies for realizing high efficient electrochemical conversions and for establishing advanced Li-ion and Na-ion batteries.