Leveraging Battery Performance through Mechanically Interlocked Polymers

Abstract

Batteries are essential energy storage devices for renewable energies such as solar, wind, and hydropower. The develppemt of high-performace batteries with enhanced energy density, safety and stability often involves the development and optimization of polymeric components, including polymer electrolytes, electrode binders and coatings within the batteries.Mechanically interlocked polymers (MIPs), which exhibit unique dynamics and adaptabilities due to their embedded mechanical bond motifs, have emerged as promising polymeric materials. Their application in batteris has only gained traction within the past decade, largely constrained by the synthetic challenges associated with these uncoventional bonds.Neverthelss, integrating novel MIPs into batteries-weather as electrolytes, binders or coatings-has demonstrated considerable potential for improving the battery performance. While the exploration of novel MIPs is of inherent scientific interest, their application in batteries highlights the exciting intersection between polymer design and battery performance.In this review, we summarize the progress made toward leveraging MIP materials for enhanced battery performance, with the goal of inspiring innovative, scalable MIP designs and underscoring the significant opportunities at the interface of MIP chemistry and battery research.