New lithium metal battery doubles energy capacity! Has China beaten us to it again?

Using lithium metal to replace graphite anodes in lithium-ion batteries is a goal that battery chemists all over the world have been chasing for well over a decade. Theoretically lithium metal can store TEN TIMES as much energy as graphite. The trouble is, what makes lithium so good as an energy carrier - its highly reactive properties - also makes it very difficult to manage inside a cell. But now, the mighty CATL and a Technology University in China have both come forward with solutions to the conundrum. Help support this channel's independence at http://www.patreon.com/justhaveathink Or with a donation via Paypal by clicking here https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=GWR73EHXGJMAE&source=url You can also help keep my brain ticking over during the long hours of research and editing via the nice folks at BuyMeACoffee.com https://www.buymeacoffee.com/justhaveathink Video Transcripts available at our website http://www.justhaveathink.com Reference Links: Tianjin Resarch Paper Huang, H., Hu, Y., Hou, Y. et al. Delocalized electrolyte design enables 600 Wh kg−1 lithium metal pouch cells. Nature (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09382-4 CATL Research Paper https://www.nature.com/articles/s41565-025-01935-y CATL Press Release https://www.catl.com/en/news/6456.html Check out other YouTube Climate Communicators zentouro: https://www.youtube.com/user/zentouro Climate Adam: https://www.youtube.com/user/ClimateAdam Kurtis Baute: https://www.youtube.com/user/ScopeofScience Levi Hildebrand: https://www.youtube.com/user/The100LH Simon Clark: https://www.youtube.com/user/SimonOxfPhys Sarah Karvner: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRwMkTu8sCwOOD6_7QYrZnw ClimateTown: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuVLG9pThvBABcYCm7pkNkA Jack Harries: https://www.youtube.com/user/JacksGap Beckisphere: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT39HQq5eDKonaUV8ujiBCQ Our Changing Climate : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNXvxXpDJXp-mZu3pFMzYHQ