Thermal runaway (TR) remains a critical bottleneck for the safe application of lithium-ion battery (LIB) in large-scale energy storage systems, arising from the instability of battery materials under high temperatures. This review systematically summarizes materials design strategies to suppress TR, focusing on modifications of cathodes, anodes, separators, and electrolytes. For cathodes, surface coating and bulk doping enhance the structural stability and thermal decomposition temperature of high-Ni materials, while nanoscale engineering and carbon networks improve the electronic conductivity and interfacial stability of LiFePO4 (LFP). For anodes, surface modification of graphite suppresses solid-electrolyte interphase degradation, and nanostructured silicon-based composites mitigate thermal failure caused by volume expansion. Separator functionalization, including ceramic coating, inorganic separators, and thermal shutdown separators, enhances thermo-mechanical stability and enables thermally triggered ion blocking. Flame-retardant electrolytes incorporate phosphorus-based, organosilicon, and halogenated additives that act through combined gas- and condensed-phase mechanisms. The review further discusses challenges in interfacial compatibility, system integration, and trade-offs among multiple performance metrics. Future efforts should focus on integrating intrinsic thermal stability with smart safety functions to achieve both high energy density and inherent safety. This review provides a systematic reference for the design and industrialization of high-safety materials for LIBs.
Hu et al. (Sat,) studied this question.