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Chalcogens for high-energy batteries

Nature Reviews Materials volume 10, pages 268–284 (2025)Cite this article

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Abstract

Rapid developments in electric vehicles and portable electronic devices have fuelled demand for high-energy batteries. Along these lines, chalcogen-driven static conversion batteries (CSCBs), which operate by multielectron transfer, are attracting attention from academia and industry. Because of their high capacity and high voltage output, CSCBs are promising for efficient energy-storage applications. This Review surveys efforts to implement chalcogens with multivalent conversion as the high-energy redox-active component in various rechargeable batteries. First, we examine the evolution of CSCBs and summarize the merits and limitations of these batteries. Subsequently, we discuss state-of-the-art redox mechanisms, approaches for multivalent conversion activation, problems faced in using CSCBs and strategies for enhancing their performance. We also describe the potential of using chalcogens with multivalent conversion chemistry for halogen fixation in reversible multistage processes. Finally, we cover the challenges associated with the design of high-performance CSCBs and provide guidelines for their future design.

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Fig. 1: Milestone developments in CSCBs with multivalent conversion processes, and the theoretical capacity and source cost of typical cathode materials in diverse battery systems.
Fig. 2: Multivalent conversion process of chalcogens in CSCBs.
Fig. 3: Basic mechanism of and activation strategies for multivalent chalcogen conversion in CSCBs.
Fig. 4: Challenges in achieving high-performance CSCBs with multivalent chalcogen conversion.
Fig. 5: Optimization strategies for high-performance CSCBs.
Fig. 6: Chalcogen–halogen coordination chemistry for enhancing the energy density of CSCBs.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China under Project 2019YFA0705104 and the RGC Collaborative Research Fund under C1002-21G.

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

    Ze Chen & Chunyi Zhi

  2. School of Interdisciplinary Studies, Lingnan University, Hong Kong, China

    Ze Chen

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Chen, Z., Zhi, C. Chalcogens for high-energy batteries. Nat Rev Mater 10, 268–284 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41578-025-00773-7

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