In Situ Constructing Metal-Organic Complex Interface Layer Using Biomolecule Enabling Stabilize Zn Anode.

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are considered as a promising candidate for next-generation large-scale energy storage due to their high safety, low cost, and eco-friendliness. Unfortunately, commercialization of ZIBs is severely hindered owing to rampant dendrite growth and detrimental side reactions on the Zn anode. Herein, inspired by the metal-organic complex interphase strategy, the authors apply adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to in situ construct a multifunctional film on the metal Zn surface (marked as ATP@Zn) by a facile etching method. The ATP-induced interfacial layer enhances lipophilicity, promoting uniform Zn2+ flux and further homogenizing Zn deposition. Meanwhile, the functional interlayer improves the anticorrosion ability of the Zn anode, effectively suppressing corrosion and hydrogen evolution. Consequently, the as-prepared ATP@Zn anode in the symmetric cell exhibits eminent plating/stripping reversibility for over 2800 h at 5.0 mA cm-2 and 1 mAh cm-2. Furthermore, the assembled ATP@Zn||MnO2 full cells are investigated to evaluate practical feasibilities. This work provides an efficient and simple strategy to prepare stabilized Zn anode toward high-performance ZIBs.

Large-Scale Synthesis of High Energy Thermal Battery Cathode Ni0.5Co0.5S2 by a Simple Sintering Technique.

With the synergies of multiple elements, bimetallic sulfides exhibit excellent performance as splendid electrode materials and effective catalysts. However, large-scale synthesis of high-performance single-phase multicomponent sulfides has always been a challenge. Based on thermodynamic calculations, the intermediate phases NiS2 and Co3S4 are devoted to the synthesis of single-phase Ni0.5Co0.5S2. Because the reaction from NiS2 and Co3S4 to Ni0.5Co0.5S2 goes through a lower energy, it thermodynamically contributes to achieving a single-phase structure. Thus, single-phase Ni0.5Co0.5S2 can be simply and quickly prepared by two-step sintering and successfully scalable for mass production. This technique can extend to the whole ingredients Ni1-xCoxS2. Ni0.5Co0.5S2 demonstrates excellent thermal stability and good conductivity. It delivers a specific capacity of 671 mAh·g-1 and a specific energy of 1173 Wh·kg-1 when applied to a thermal battery cathode, which are increased by 18.6% and 25.0%, respectively, compared to pristine NiS2 (566 mAh·g-1) and CoS2 (537 mAh·g-1). This work proposes an innovative sintering method, which is applicable for cost-efficient and large-scale synthesis of single-phase multicomponent sulfides.