In 2019 the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to three outstanding scientists for their contributions to the development of the lithium-ion battery (LIB). Stanley Whittingham demonstrated the first working lithium metal battery, John Goodenough improved its energy density by introducing lithium cobalt oxide, while Akira Yoshino made the rechargeable battery safer making it a true LIB, e.g. lithium could be present inside the battery only in its ionic form, eliminating highly reactive lithium metal. All these developments led to the practical rechargeable LIB, which we use today. Nobody can imagine anymore our lives without devices powered by
rechargeable batteries, applications of which span from portable devices to the automotive industry to large-scale stationary battery storage for storing energy from renewable sources. Rechargeable non-aqueous LIBs are and will be for the foreseeable future among the most advanced energy storage systems, with the continuously growing need for high gravimetric and volumetric energy and power densities—the key factors, which made LIBs a success story. The other important requirements for future rechargeable batteries are sustainability, low cost and enhanced safety. At the same time, the relative importance of these can change depending on the application, and only the demand for high safety is a firmly remaining precondition. For example, in the
case of portable electronics, the price is less important than energy density, while in the automotive sector, the lifetime and costs become decisive. [...]