(Press-News.org) To successfully meet the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we need significant breakthroughs in clean and efficient energy technologies. Central to this effort is the development of next-generation energy storage systems that can contribute towards our global goal of carbon neutrality. Among many possible candidates, high-energy-density batteries have drawn particular attention, as they are expected to power future electric vehicles, grid-scale renewable energy storage, and other sustainable applications.
Lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) batteries stand out due to their exceptionally high theoretical energy density, which far exceeds that of conventional lithium-ion batteries. Despite this potential, their practical application has been limited by poor cycle life and rapid degradation. Understanding the root causes of this instability is a critical step toward realizing a sustainable and innovative energy future.
In a recent study, a Tohoku University research team led by Dr. Wei Yu (FRIS) Professor Hirotomo Nishihara (AIMR/IMRAM), and first author Zhaohan Shen (JSPS Fellow (DC1)) - with researchers from Gunma University, Kyushu Synchrotron Light Research Center, Manchester Metropolitan University (UK), and the University of Cambridge (UK) - addressed this long-standing challenge by synthesizing a high-purity (> 99%) 13C-labeled graphene mesosponge (13C-GMS).
“Graphene mesosponge is a hollow-structured material with sponge-like properties, such as high flexibility,” explains Nishihara, “It has a unique structure that makes it useful for many different applications. In this case, we customized it to learn more about why batteries fail,”
This novel material, with high surface area and few edge sites, serves as a stable scaffold for loading polymorphic ruthenium (Ru) catalysts. By integrating quantitative characterization techniques and theoretical simulations, the team was able to clearly distinguish whether battery failure originates from carbon cathode degradation or electrolyte decomposition.
The results show that while reducing charge potential helps to suppress carbon cathode degradation, different Ru crystal phases induce varying degrees of electrolyte decomposition.
“Our findings allow us to point out the ‘weakest link’ in batteries – either the cathode or the electrolyte – which lets us know exactly what we need to improve to make Li-O2 batteries a more practical option,” explains Yu.
This breakthrough not only resolves a key controversy regarding the role of solid-state catalysts in Li-O2 batteries but also contributes to the global pursuit of sustainable energy storage solutions. By revealing the hidden mechanisms behind battery failure, the research provides new design principles for next-generation batteries that can support SDGs and accelerate innovation in clean energy systems.
The findings were published in Applied Catalysis B: Environment and Energy on September 29, 2025.
About the World Premier International Research Center Initiative (WPI)
The WPI program was launched in 2007 by Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) to foster globally visible research centers boasting the highest standards and outstanding research environments. Numbering more than a dozen and operating at institutions throughout the country, these centers are given a high degree of autonomy, allowing them to engage in innovative modes of management and research. The program is administered by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS).
See the latest research news from the centers at the WPI News Portal: https://www.eurekalert.org/newsportal/WPI
Main WPI program site: www.jsps.go.jp/english/e-toplevel
Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR)
Tohoku University
Establishing a World-Leading Research Center for Materials Science
AIMR aims to contribute to society through its actions as a world-leading research center for materials science and push the boundaries of research frontiers. To this end, the institute gathers excellent researchers in the fields of physics, chemistry, materials science, engineering, and mathematics and provides a world-class research environment.
AIMR site: https://www.wpi-aimr.tohoku.ac.jp/en/
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DARIEN, IL – Eight finalists will compete in November for the first Sleep Medicine Disruptors Innovation Award from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. The award competition is part of Sleep Medicine Disruptors 2025, which will be held in person in Austin, Texas, and livestreamed Friday and Saturday, Nov. 14 - 15.
An expert panel of nine AASM members reviewed and scored 23 entries according to their novelty, practicality, and potential to improve sleep health and sleep care by solving a significant ...
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML), an aggressive and often fatal blood cancer, has long resisted a class of drugs called proteasome inhibitors, which work well in multiple myeloma. A new study by University of California San Diego researchers shows why: AML cells activate backup stress-response systems to stay alive when proteasomes are blocked. Proteasomes are cellular machines responsible for breaking down and recycling proteins, allowing cells to stay healthy. By combining proteasome inhibitors with a second drug that disables one of two backup survival pathways, the team was able to kill AML cells more effectively, reduce disease burden and extend ...
Researchers at the University of North Carolina have created microscopic soft robots shaped like flowers that can change shape and behavior in response to their surroundings, just like living organisms do. These tiny “DNA flowers” are made from special crystals formed by combining DNA and inorganic materials. They can reversibly fold and unfold in seconds, making them among the most dynamic materials ever developed on such a small scale.
Each flower’s DNA acts like a tiny computer program, telling it how to move and react to the world around ...
Melbourne researchers have discovered gender-affirming hormone therapy can alter body proteins to match a person’s gender identity, potentially affecting susceptibility to certain health conditions.
The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and the University of Melbourne, found that sex-specific blood proteins in transgender women shifted significantly after six months of gender-affirming hormone therapy, resembling those of cisgender women.
MCRI Associate Professor Boris Novakovic said remarkably the therapy reduced ...
How do mammals manage to eat in situations that cause anxiety, step into exposed spaces, or slow down when anxiety drives them to keep moving? A new study pinpoints a leptin-sensitive circuit in the lateral hypothalamus that helps to overcome anxiety to perform essential behaviours such as exploring, feeding, and limiting maladaptive hyperactivity. Leptin is a hormone that acts in the brain, regulating energy balance, influencing appetite and eating behaviour. Leptin is sensed by neurons which have leptin receptors. Many of ...
In the right combinations and conditions, two-dimensional materials can host intriguing and potentially valuable quantum phases, like superconductivity and unique forms of magnetism. Why they occur, and how they can be controlled, is of considerable interest among physicists and engineers. Research published in Nature Physics reveals a previously hidden feature that could explain how and why enigmatic quantum phases emerge.
Using a new terahertz (THz) spectroscopic technique, the researchers revealed that tiny stacks of 2D materials, found in research labs around the world, can naturally form what are known as cavities. These cavities confine light and electrons into even ...
Bethesda, MD (Oct. 17, 2025) — The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) today released a new clinical practice guideline on the surveillance of Barrett's esophagus, the only known precursor to esophageal cancer (adenocarcinoma), a highly lethal cancer whose incidence has risen substantially over recent decades. The guideline provides eight evidence-based recommendations and several key implementation statements to help clinicians monitor patients after a diagnosis of Barrett's esophagus, a condition associated with chronic ...
By the time patients start seeking care for multiple sclerosis (MS), the disease has already been damaging their brains for years. But until recently, scientists didn’t understand which brain cells were being targeted or when the injury began.
Now, by analyzing thousands of proteins found in the blood, scientists at UC San Francisco have created the clearest picture yet of when the disease attacks the myelin sheath that covers the nerve fibers. It shows that the immune system begins attacking ...
Some ancient marine organisms produced mysterious magnetic particles of unusually large size, which can now be found as fossils in marine sediments. An international team has succeeded in mapping the magnetic domains on one of such ‘giant magnetofossils’ using a sophisticated method at the Diamond X-ray source. Their analysis shows that these particles could have allowed these organisms to sense tiny variations in both the direction and intensity of the Earth’s magnetic field, enabling them to geolocate themselves and ...
Embargoed until 4 a.m. CT / 5 a.m. ET Monday, Oct. 20, 2025
DALLAS, Oct. 20, 2025 — About 9 in 10 U.S. adults have not heard of cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome, a newly defined health condition affecting nearly 90% of adults that includes heart disease, kidney disease, diabetes and obesity, according to a new survey from the American Heart Association, a relentless force changing the future of health for everyone everywhere. However, many are interested in learning more about it.
Nearly 90% of U.S. adults have at least ...
