Natural Minerals Derived Advanced Materials for High Performance Lithium‐Ion and Sodium‐Ion Storage Systems

Natural minerals are explored as low-cost and high-density electrode materials for lithium-ion and sodium-ion storage. This review summarizes energy storage mechanisms of carbon materials, silicon, metal oxides, and metal sulfides, along with related natural minerals. It highlights modification strategies to enhance electrochemical performance, emphasizing the potential of natural minerals for sustainable and large-scale energy storage applications.

Abstract

The growing demand for high-performance and sustainable energy storage materials has driven the search for alternative electrode materials for lithium-ion and sodium-ion storage devices. Traditional electrode materials, typically synthesized from high-purity chemical precursors, face challenges such as high costs and lengthy production processes. In contrast, natural minerals offer significant advantages, including abundant availability, low cost, high tap density, and inherent structural diversity. By utilizing naturally abundant minerals, electrode material costs can be drastically reduced, especially after flotation-based purification, as well as higher tap densities can be achieved, which improves the material's application potential. This review emphasizes the promise of natural minerals as electrode materials for energy storage, highlighting their cost-effectiveness, resource sustainability, and electrochemical performance. Various modification strategies, including structural design, surface modifications, heteroatom doping, and heterostructure design, have been explored to improve ion diffusion, conductivity, and structural stability. These enhancements contribute to superior energy density, power density, and cycle life in batteries. Particularly noteworthy is the self-doping capability of natural minerals, which offers a novel, environmentally friendly approach to advanced material development. This review calls for further research into optimizing the synthesis and modification of natural minerals, enabling their large-scale application in energy storage technologies.