Addressing the safety of next-generation batteries

Chuanbo Yang, Avtar Singh, Xiaofei Pu, Anudeep Mallarapu, Kandler Smith, Matt Keyser, Michael R. Haberman, Hadi Khani, Pawel Misztal, Ryan Spray, Ofodike A. Ezekoye and Donal P. Finegan ()
Additional contact information
Chuanbo Yang: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Avtar Singh: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Xiaofei Pu: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Anudeep Mallarapu: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Kandler Smith: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Matt Keyser: National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Michael R. Haberman: The University of Texas at Austin
Hadi Khani: The University of Texas at Austin
Pawel Misztal: The University of Texas at Austin
Ryan Spray: Exponent, Inc.
Ofodike A. Ezekoye: The University of Texas at Austin
Donal P. Finegan: National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Nature, 2025, vol. 645, issue 8081, 603-613

Abstract: Abstract Owing to increasing demand for low-cost energy storage with secure material supply chains, the battery community is approaching a pivotal shift beyond conventional lithium-ion (Li-ion) towards next-generation cells. Technologies that include alkali-metal anodes, solid electrolytes and earth-abundant materials such as sodium (Na) and sulfur (S) are reaching commercialization in cells. The abuse tolerance and thermal runaway hazards of such technologies diverge from conventional Li-ion cells. Consequently, designing safe batteries with next-generation materials requires a holistic approach to characterize cells and to understand their responses to abuse conditions from the beginning to the end of life. Here we provide a Perspective on how the safety and abuse tolerance of cells are likely to change for up-and-coming technologies; challenges and opportunities for reimagining safe cell and battery designs; gaps in our knowledge; capabilities for understanding the hazards of thermal runaway and how to address them; how standard abuse tests may need to adapt to new challenges; and how research needs to support affected professionals, from pack designers to first responders, to manage hazards and ensure safe roll-out of next-generation cells into applications like electric vehicles (EVs). Finally, given the large number of next-generation technologies being explored, we encourage giving priority to safety-focused research in proportion to the rate of manufacturing scale-up of each specific technology.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09358-4 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:nature:v:645:y:2025:i:8081:d:10.1038_s41586-025-09358-4

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09358-4

Access Statistics for this article

Nature is currently edited by Magdalena Skipper

More articles in Nature from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().