Fig 1

(a) Scheme of dilemma for Li metal anode in rechargeable batteries 4; (b) schematic illustration explaining root growth mechanism of lithium whiskers (adapted from. copyright: Elsevier) 23; (c) schematic diagram of lithium deposition and dissolution 26."

Fig 2

Schematic diagrams of the polymer structure and its bonding state with Li atoms after geometry optimization for (a) PVA, (b) PVAm, (c) PAA and (d) comparison of the corresponding binding energies (Eb) 62; (e) voltage–time curves at a higher current density of 3 mA·cm-2 for the capacity of 1 mAh·cm-2 and Detailed voltage profiles at 3 mA·cm-2 for: (f) 30th, (g) 60th, and (h) 77th cycles 63."

Fig 3

(a) Schematic diagram of PEO-UPy coating on Li metal surface; (b)photographs of bare Li and LiPEO-UPy@Li anodes exposed to ambient air for different durations; (c) adhesion test of PEO-UPy@Li anode against 50 g mass; (d) LiPEO-UPy polymer kept integrity in DOL/DME solution; CEs of bare Cu and LiPEO-UPy@Cu electrodes with a fixed capacity of 1 mAh·cm-2 at a current density of (d) 1 mA·cm-2 and (e) 5 mA·cm-2 65."

Fig 4

(a) Chemical structures of the polymer coatings used in this study, coloring of the label corresponds to the chemical functionality of the polymer; (b) diagram of the conditions used to study the initial stages of Li metal growth under polymer coatings; (c) schematic of the factors influencing Li metal deposition through a polymer coating 66."

Fig 5

SEM images of Li surfaces following 50 charge-discharge cycles in symmetric cells using current rate of 1 mA·cm-2 and capacity of 1 mAh·cm-2 at 600 magnification (a) bare Li and (b) Al2O3 @Li; and at 5000 magnification (c) bare Li and (d) Al2O3 @Li 50."

Fig 6

Schematic of the design of a lithium metal electrode in lithium-sulfur battery configurations, (a) a battery without the Li3N layer and (b) a battery with the Li3N layer 78; (c) schematic diagram of preparation of LiF coating 79; (d) cycling performance of the Li|LiFePO4 battery system using Li metal and PPA-Li anodes and (e) the typical charge/discharge profiles after activation at a current rate of 0.5C, the inset of (e) shows enlarged profiles 81."

Fig 7

(a) Schematic illustration of fabrication process of LSSe@Li anode; the electrochemical performance of Li-LFP and LSSe@Li-LFP: (b) the rate performance, (c) the cycling performance at the rate of 1C, (d) the charge/discharge curves at the rate of 1C; the surface morphology of (e) bare Li and (f) LSSe@Li anode after rate cycling 83."

Fig 8

(a) A schematic illustration of the fabrication of the SR-G-Li anode; the Electrochemical performance of the pouch cells of LiFePO4/SR-G-Li and LiFePO4/Li of (b) the long-term galvanostatic cycling up to 200 cycles and (c) rate capability at various current densities 88."

Fig 9

(a) CE of Li|Cu half cells; (b) voltage–time curves of symmetric Li|Li cells; top-view and cross-sectional SEM images of deposited Li (0.5 mA·cm-2/1 mAh·cm-2) on (c) bare Cu, (d) PVDF-HFP-modified Cu, and (e) APL-modified Cu foils at a current density of 0.5 mA·cm-2 89."

Fig 10

(a) Atomic structure and binding energy between Li cation and the dual-layered film (left), ester-based SEI (right); (b) the overpotential of Li plating on Cu and PPE-Cu substrates; (c) a schematic diagram for the operational principle of AFM; the force–distance curves and the corresponding Young's modulus values of the (d) organic layer and (e) inorganic layer in the dual-layered film 91."

Fig 11

Schematic illustration of the Li deposition process on the (a) Ag(Au)-Li anode and (b) pristine Li anode; (c) time–voltage profiles of Li plating/stripping in Ag-Li and bare Li symmetric cells at 1 mA·cm-2 with a Li deposition capacity of 1 mAh·cm-2; (d) electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS) of Ag-Li, Au-Li and Li symmetric cells 99."