The Current Move of Lithium Ion Batteries Towards the Next Phase

Application targets of lithium ion batteries (LIBs) are moving from small-sized mobile devices of information technology to large-scale electric vehicles (xEVs) and energy storage systems (ESSs). Environmental issues and abruptly increasing power demands are pushing high performance energy storage devices or systems onto markets. LIBs are one of the most potential candidates as the energy storage devices mainly due to their high energy densities with fairly good rate capabilities and a fairly long cycle life. As battery systems become larger in terms of stored energy as well as physical size, the safety concerns should be more seriously cared. Each application target has its own specification so that electrode materials should be chosen to meet requirements of the corresponding application. This report diagnoses the current market trends of LIBs as a primary topic, followed by giving an overview of anode and cathode material candidates of LIBs for xEVs and ESSs based on their electrochemical properties.