The adjustment of energy structure is an important issue for China's energy development in the 21st century,in which the development of renewable new energy is an important means to optimize the energy structure and reduce environmental pollution. Nowadays,lithium-based batteries are still the main devices that can achieve reversible storage of renewable energy,whose electrochemical performance is often affected under harsh environmental conditions such as different temperatures,mechanical stress and humidity. As a result,problems including the damage of battery components,capacity fading,short-circuit explosion,and thermal runaway will occur. The failure mechanism of lithium-based batteries under harsh environmental conditions is systematically analyzed. Then,the main methods for improving their electrochemical and safety performance are reviewed. Finally,the urgent problems to be solved are summarized. This paper provides ideas for the failure mechanism research on lithium-based batteries as well as the development and applications under harsh environmental conditions.