Coordination Chemistry in magnesium battery electrolytes: how ligands affect their performance

Magnesium battery is potentially a safe, cost-effective and high energy density technology for large scale energy storage. However, the development of magnesium battery has been hindered by the limited performance and the lack of fundamental understandings of electrolytes. Here, we present a study in understanding coordination chemistry of Mg(BH4)2 in ethereal solvents. The O donor denticity, i.e. ligand strength of the ethereal solvents which act as ligands to form solvated Mg complexes, plays a significant role in enhancing coulombic efficiency of the corresponding solvated Mg complex electrolytes. A new electrolyte is developed based on Mg(BH4)2, diglyme and LiBH4. The preliminary electrochemical test results show that the new electrolyte demonstrates a close to 100% coulombic efficiency, no dendrite formation and stable cycling performance for Mg plating/stripping and Mg insertion/de-insertion in a model cathode material Mo6S8 Chevrel phase.