Bridging battery manufacture and performance: Particle structure assembly as a governing state variable (Open Access)--颗粒学报PARTICUOLOGY

Jundong Zhang^a, Chenzi Zhao^{a b c}, Kexuan Liao^{a b}, Rui Zhang^d, Jiangkui Hu^c, Xiang Chen^{a b c}, Chen Ling^e, Daiwei Wang^{a f}, Qiang Zhang^{a b c g *}

a State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering and Low-Carbon Technology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Complex Solid-State Batteries, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
b Institute for Carbon Neutrality, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
c AI Solid-State Battery Innovation Center, Yibin, 644002, China
d Beijing Huairou Laboratory, Beijing, 101400, China
e School of Interdisciplinary Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, 100081, China
f Department of Mechanical Engineering, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, 75205, TX, United States
g Shanxi Research Institute for Clean Energy, Tsinghua University, Taiyuan, 030032, China

10.1016/j.partic.2026.07.021

Volume 117, October 2026, Pages 516-523

Received 29 April 2026, Revised 11 June 2026, Accepted 1 July 2026, Available online 12 August 2026, Version of Record 24 August 2026.

E-mail: zhang-qiang@mails.tsinghua.edu.cn

Highlights

• Particle structure assembly (PSA) is proposed as a governing state variable.

• PSA integrates the particle-scale characteristics: particle size distribution, porosity, tortuosity, and contact networks.

• PSA affords a universal framework for rational design in battery systems.

Abstract

Rechargeable batteries play an indispensable role in contemporary energy storage. Within battery components such as electrodes, the manner in which particles are arranged into functional structures critically governs electrochemical performance. Although particle-scale electrode design has received increasing attention, its role is still often discussed through isolated descriptors or specific processes rather than as an integrated assembly state. Here we propose that particle structure assembly (PSA), which encompasses particle size distribution, porosity, tortuosity, and interparticle contact networks, should be identified as an integrated governing state variable that bridges manufacture processes and battery performance. PSA is not a static descriptor but an evolving structural state shaped sequentially by powder preparation, slurry processing, and calendering during cell fabrication. PSA determines structural configuration and interfacial connectivity, thereby dictating the distribution of concentration fields, electric potentials, and mechanical stresses, highlighting its core scientific position. The PSA-constrained multi-physics landscape defines the accessible performance space of a working battery. Recognizing PSA as a central state variable enables the shift from isolated chemistry-centric design to integrated particle-engineering strategies, offering a unified framework to accelerate next-generation battery technologies.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Particle structure assembly; Battery energy particles; Battery manufacture; Particle-scale evolution; Multi-physics coupling

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