Fire-starting battery dendrites go with the flow

Short bursts of current can flatten spiny dendrites growing on a battery’s lithium metal anode. This method of self-healing dendrites, which can cause a battery to catch fire, could be used to make more powerful batteries viable, the researchers say. Researchers started experimenting with lithium metal anodes in the 1970s to increase the energy density of rechargable batteries. An electrode with a thin layer of lithium can store more energy-carrying atoms than one made from porous materials like graphite. But they soon found that lithium anodes can catch fire.