If confirmed, this is good news! However, this is only a proof of concept!
The world needs better batteries!
"... one major flaw that has proven incredibly stubborn despite scientists’ best efforts to overcome it: lithium dendrites. ..."
From the highlights and the abstract:
"Highlights
• Growing dendrites deflect in response to applied loading, averting short circuits
• Dendrites propagate due to plating-induced fracture of the electrolyte
• Stresses on the order of 150 MPa deflect and arrest dendrites in oxide electrolytes
• Engineered residual thermal stresses can deflect dendrites in conventional cells
Summary
Metal-dendrite penetration is a mode of electrolyte failure that threatens the viability of metal-anode-based solid-state batteries. Whether dendrites are driven by mechanical failure or electrochemical degradation of solid electrolytes remains an open question. If internal mechanical forces drive failure, superimposing a compressive load that counters internal stress may mitigate dendrite penetration. Here, we investigate this hypothesis by dynamically applying mechanical loads to growing dendrites in Li6.6La3Zr1.6Ta0.4O12 solid electrolytes. Operando microscopy reveals marked deflection in the dendrite growth trajectory at the onset of compressive loading. For sufficient loading, this deflection averts cell failure. Using fracture mechanics, we quantify the impact of stack pressure and in-plane stresses on dendrite trajectory, chart the residual stresses required to prevent short-circuit failure, and propose design approaches to achieve such stresses. For the materials studied here, we show that dendrite propagation is dictated by electrolyte fracture, with electronic leakage playing a negligible role."
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