A long-life lithium-oxygen battery via a molecular quenching/mediating mechanism

The advancement of lithium-oxygen (Li-O₂) batteries has been hindered by challenges including low discharge capacity, poor energy efficiency, severe parasitic reactions, etc. We report an Li-O₂ battery operated via a new quenching/mediating mechanism that relies on the direct chemical reactions between a versatile molecule and superoxide radical/Li₂O₂. The battery exhibits a 46-fold increase in discharge capacity, a low charge overpotential of 0.7 V, and an ultralong cycle life >1400 cycles. Featuring redox-active 2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-1-piperidinyloxy moieties bridged by a quenching-active perylene diimide backbone, the tailor-designed molecule acts as a redox mediator to catalyze discharge/charge reactions and serves as a reusable superoxide quencher to chemically react with superoxide species generated during battery operation. The all-in-one molecule can simultaneously tackle issues of parasitic reactions associated with superoxide radicals, singlet oxygen, high overpotentials, and lithium corrosion. The molecular design of multifunctional additives combining various capabilities opens a new avenue for developing high-performance Li-O₂ batteries.