Lithium-CO₂ ‘breathing’ battery breakthrough

May 21, 2025

The battery in your next device could do more than power it- it could clean the air.

In a breakthrough that could reshape clean energy tech, scientists at the University of Surrey have developed a lithium–CO₂ battery that not only stores energy efficiently but also captures carbon dioxide in the process — turning pollution into power.

These eco-friendly batteries mark a promising step toward real-world applications. If commercialised, these batteries could not only help cut emissions from vehicles and industrial sources, but operate on Mars, scientists say, where the atmosphere is 95 percent CO₂. 

In terms of real-world emissions, the impact could be tangible.

 “By our rough calculations, one kilogram of the catalyst could absorb around 18.5 kilograms of CO₂,” Dr Daniel Commandeur, Surrey Future Fellow, said in a release. “That’s roughly equivalent to the emissions from a 100-mile car drive — meaning this battery could, quite literally, offset a day’s commute.”

Until now, lithium–CO₂ batteries have fallen short — prone to rapid wear, poor rechargeability, and a dependence on costly rare metals like as ruthenium and platinum.

From pollutants to power

But scientists have found a workaround: a low-cost catalyst called caesium phosphomolybdate (CPM), which is inexpensive and easy to manufacture at room temperature.

Backed by computer modelling and lab tests, CPM helped the battery store 2.5 times as much charge as a lithium-ion, charge with less power, and run reliably for over 100 cycles.

“There’s a growing need for energy storage solutions that support our push toward renewable power while also tackling the growing threat of climate change. Our work on lithium–CO₂ batteries is a potential game-changer in making that vision a reality,” Dr. Siddharth Gadkari, a lecturer in Chemical Process Engineering at the university, said.

To uncover why CPM worked so effectively, researchers from Surrey’s School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering and the Advanced Technology Institute took a two-pronged approach.

First, they dismantled the battery after multiple charge–discharge cycles to examine the chemical changes inside.

These post-mortem tests revealed that lithium carbonate — the compound formed when CO₂ is absorbed — could be consistently built up and broken down, a critical trait for long-term battery performance.

Next, the team used computer modelling based on density functional theory (DFT) to simulate how reactions play out on the material’s surface.

The results showed that CPM’s stable, porous structure provides an ideal platform for the chemical processes that drive the battery’s performance.

Building better battery chemistry

“What’s exciting about this discovery is that it combines strong performance with simplicity. We’ve shown that it’s possible to build efficient lithium–CO₂ batteries using affordable, scalable materials – no rare metals required. Our findings also open the door to designing even better catalysts in the future. ” Commandeur said.

The discovery paves the way for designing even more efficient, low-cost battery materials. With deeper research into how these catalysts interact with electrodes and electrolytes, lithium–CO₂ batteries could evolve into a practical, scalable solution for clean energy storage — while actively removing carbon from the atmosphere.

The team is now focused on making the technology even more cost-effective by developing a catalyst that replaces caesium — since it’s the phosphomolybdate that plays the critical role.

This could bring the system closer to large-scale, affordable deployment.

Researchers also plan to study the battery’s charging and discharging processes in real time to gain deeper insights into its internal mechanisms, with the goal of further improving performance and durability with a major focus on evaluating how the battery performs under different CO₂ pressures.

“If the batteries work at 0.006 bar, the pressure on the Martian atmosphere, they could power anything from an exploration rover to a colony. At 0.0004 bar, Earth’s ambient air pressure, they could capture CO₂ from our atmosphere and store power anywhere. In all cases, the key question will be how it affects the battery’s charge capacity,” Commandeur said.