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  • Review Article
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The promises and reality of metal–CO2 batteries

Nature Reviews Clean Technology (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

By integrating energy storage with carbon dioxide (CO2) utilization, metal–CO2 batteries can contribute to net-zero energy storage and carbon management. However, challenges related to performance, cost and safety continue to hinder their commercial deployment. In this Review, we discuss two types of metal–CO2 battery — aqueous and non-aqueous — and examine their fundamental mechanisms, key component features and potential applications. In both systems, bifunctional catalysts and gas-diffusion layers are critical for efficient cathode reactions. Electrolyte design in non-aqueous systems must enable robust formation of the solid electrolyte interphase and broaden the operating temperature range (–120 °C to 50 °C). Aqueous systems need to suppress hydrogen evolution and carbonate formation effectively to ensure efficient CO2 reduction. Improving anode and separator stability, as well as optimizing cell configuration to ensure safe operation, are essential for long-term battery performance. Environmental and economic assessments reveal that most of the CO2 emissions and costs stem from cell components, requiring cost-efficient fabrication methods and recycling strategies to achieve sustainable and scalability targets. Future research should focus on integrated design principles that combine advanced materials, cell engineering and sustainability evaluation to unlock the full potential of metal–CO2 batteries as next-generation energy-storage and CO2-utilization technologies.

Key points

  • Metal–CO2 batteries offer both efficient energy storage and CO2 utilization, directly contributing to net-zero emissions goals.

  • The efficiency and stability of metal–CO2 batteries are influenced by electrode architecture, electrolyte formulation, anode engineering, separator optimization and gas purity.

  • Non-aqueous metal–CO2 batteries prioritize high energy storage, whereas aqueous systems offer a distinct advantage by converting CO2 into value-added chemicals during discharge.

  • Addressing safety issues, such as gas management, thermal runaway and electrolyte corrosion, is critical to enabling the large-scale deployment of metal-CO2 batteries.

  • The performance of metal–CO2 batteries is highly dependent on CO2 purity. Integration with CO2 capture systems and/or cathodes with enhanced impurity tolerance are needed.

  • Holistic development of metal–CO2 batteries, focusing on reducing CO2 emissions and costs in manufacturing, operating and recycling, could ensure long-term sustainability.

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Fig. 1: Metal–CO2 battery configurations.
Fig. 2: Cathode design challenges and solutions.
Fig. 3: Electrolyte design challenges and solutions.
Fig. 4: Anode and separator design challenges and solutions.
Fig. 5: Gas management, safety concerns and mitigation strategies.
Fig. 6: Sustainability and economic feasibility.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the Australian Research Council (ARC) for support (grants CE230100017, FL210100050, DP210101486, DE240100159, DE250101071 and DP250102252). J.Z. acknowledges support from Sandland Bequest_Zou and an AINSE Early Career Researcher Grant (ECRG).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemical Engineering, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    Jinshuo Zou  (邹金硕), Divyani Gupta, Jodie A. Yuwono, Shilin Zhang  (张仕林) & Zaiping Guo  (郭再萍)

  2. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Zaiping Guo  (郭再萍)

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  1. Jinshuo Zou  (邹金硕)
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  2. Divyani Gupta
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Contributions

J.Z., D.G. and J.A.Y. researched data for the article. All authors contributed substantially to discussion of the content. J.A.Y. performed the life cycle assessment and techno-economic analyses. J.Z. and D.G. wrote the article. All authors reviewed and/or edited the manuscript before submission.

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Correspondence to Shilin Zhang  (张仕林) or Zaiping Guo  (郭再萍).

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Nature Reviews Clean Technology thanks Chandra S. Sharma, who co-reviewed with Ankit Chourasia; Shuya Wei; and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Supplementary information

Glossary

Cathode–electrolyte interface

Both Faradaic and non-Faradaic processes occur at the cathode–electrolyte interface. When the cathode and electrolyte come into ohmic contact, charge-transfer processes (oxidation and reduction) occur (Faradaic). Changes due to adsorption and desorption result in the flow of transient external currents (non-Faradaic) at the interface.

Dendrite growth

Dendrites are tiny, branch-like crystal structures extending from metal anodes because of metal diffusion and plating. Dendrites can penetrate the separator, causing a short circuit in the battery.

Faradaic efficiency

A metric for product selectivity in electrochemical reactions, defined as the fraction of electrical charge consumed during the reaction for selective product generation (Qprod) divided by the total charge (Qtotal) passed, expressed in per cent.

Gutmann number

The Gutmann donor number describes electron-donating and H-bond-acceptor ability. It helps to determine the hydrogen-bonding environment and influences the rate of the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in aqueous electrolytes.

Linear scaling relationships

Theoretical tools providing constraints in catalyst design by relating the binding energy of catalyst intermediates and adsorbates across a wide range of catalysts.

Rocking chair

The rocking chair battery mechanism involves shuttling of metal ions between the cathode and anode.

Sabatier principle

The Sabatier principle states that optimal catalytic activity occurs when the interaction between a catalyst and a reactant is neither too strong nor too weak to facilitate both adsorption and desorption.

Solid electrolyte interphase

(SEI). A layer formed at the electrode–electrolyte interface that passivates the electrode surface. It should be stable during battery cycling and accelerate metal-ion transfer.

Spillover effects

Spillover energy determines the stability of intermediates at the dopant or host metal sites, which induce the spillover effect in single-atom alloys. The spillover effect in single-atom alloys involves the migration of adsorbed species from a secondary single-atom active site (dopant) towards the primary single atom.

Synergistic optimization

Refers to the introduction of multiple active sites in a catalyst to improve the reaction kinetics, in which the combined catalytic activity of different active sites is greater compared to their individual activities thanks to cooperative interactions.

Tandem reactions

A tandem reaction in electrochemical CO2 reduction is a sequential process in which CO2 is first converted into intermediates such as CO and then further reduced to final products (C2+ products).

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Zou, J., Gupta, D., Yuwono, J.A. et al. The promises and reality of metal–CO2 batteries. Nat. Rev. Clean Technol. (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44359-025-00099-1

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