Impact of Ambient Temperature on Reversible Capacity Loss and Electrochemical Behavior of Commercial Lithium-Ion Battery Chemistries

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are vital to modern energy systems, with nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC), lithium iron phosphate (LFP), and nickel cobalt aluminum oxide (NCA) chemistries accounting for ∼ 90% of the market due to their trade-offs in performance, cost, safety, and sustainability. Although these chemistries are well studied for irreversible capacity loss (permanent aging) under extreme conditions, reversible capacity loss remains comparatively underexplored across real-world temperature ranges. This form of loss is a temporary reduction in usable capacity caused by environmental factors such as temperature fluctuations, with capacity often recoverable once optimal conditions are restored. While not permanent, it reduces performance, impairs state-of-charge and state-of-health estimation, and limits battery management system effectiveness, particularly in applications subject to daily or seasonal temperature variations. This study addresses these gaps by evaluating reversible capacity loss and AC/DC internal resistance growth in NMC, LFP, and NCA. Electrochemical behavior is characterized using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) across five controlled ambient temperatures (10°C to 45°C) under standardized charge-discharge conditions. The findings establish benchmarks for reversible capacity loss in these chemistries and provide guidance for selecting LIBs suited to temperature-sensitive applications in grid storage, electric vehicles, and portable electronics.