Recent developments in insertion anode materials for Li-ion batteries

Insertion anode materials have gained immense attention as commercial anode materials for lithium-ion batteries owing to their reversible Li-ion intercalation/deintercalation mechanism and highly stable crystal structure. Herein, the progress in the development of graphite, titanium-based anode materials, MXene (Ti₃C₂T_x), and other insertion anode materials is reviewed. The effect of modification strategies (such as nanostructure design, surface engineering, bulk phase engineering, and composite structure design) on the electrochemical properties of insertion anode materials is discussed. Studies have shown that the specific capacity and rate and cycling performances of these anode materials can be significantly improved by optimising their crystal structure, interface engineering, and conductive network construction. However, traditional insertion materials suffer from low specific capacity and high polarization at high rates. Further research is imperative to balance the energy density and dynamic performance of these materials to realise their widespread application in fast-charge and high energy density lithium-ion batteries.