Surface Patterning of Metal Zinc Electrode with an In-Region Zincophilic Interface for High-Rate and Long-Cycle-Life Zinc Metal Anode.

The undesirable dendrite growth induced by non-planar zinc (Zn) deposition and low Coulombic efficiency resulting from severe side reactions have been long-standing challenges for metallic Zn anodes and substantially impede the practical application of rechargeable aqueous Zn metal batteries (ZMBs). Herein, we present a strategy for achieving a high-rate and long-cycle-life Zn metal anode by patterning Zn foil surfaces and endowing a Zn-Indium (Zn-In) interface in the microchannels. The accumulation of electrons in the microchannel and the zincophilicity of the Zn-In interface promote preferential heteroepitaxial Zn deposition in the microchannel region and enhance the tolerance of the electrode at high current densities. Meanwhile, electron aggregation accelerates the dissolution of non-(002) plane Zn atoms on the array surface, thereby directing the subsequent homoepitaxial Zn deposition on the array surface. Consequently, the planar dendrite-free Zn deposition and long-term cycling stability are achieved (5,050 h at 10.0 mA cm-2 and 27,000 cycles at 20.0 mA cm-2). Furthermore, a Zn/I2 full cell assembled by pairing with such an anode can maintain good stability for 3,500 cycles at 5.0 C, demonstrating the application potential of the as-prepared ZnIn anode for high-performance aqueous ZMBs.

Sodium titanium phosphate nanocube decorated on tablet-like carbon for robust sodium storage performance at low temperature.

Sodium-ion batteries, featuring resource abundance and similar working mechanisms to lithium-ion batteries, have gained extensive interest in both scientific exploration and industrial applications. However, the extremely sluggish reaction kinetics of charge carrier (Na+) at subzero temperatures significantly reduces their specific capacities and cycling life. Herein, this study presents a novel hybrid structure with sodium titanium phosphate (NaTi2(PO4)3, NTP) nanocube in-situ decorated on tablet-like carbon (NTP/C), which manifests superior sodium storage performances at low temperatures. At even -25 °C, a stable cycling with a specific capacity of 94.3 mAh/g can still be maintained after 200 cycles at 0.5 A/g, delivering a high capacity retention of 91.5 % compared with that at room temperature, along with an excellent rate capability. Generally, the superionic conductor structure, flat voltage plateaus, as well as the conductive carbonaceous framework can efficiently facilitate the charge transfer, accelerate the diffusion of Na+, and decrease the electrochemical polarization. Moreover, further investigations on diffusion kinetics, solid electrolyte interface layer, and the interaction between NTP and carbonaceous skeleton reveal its high Na+ diffusion coefficient, robust solid electrolyte interface, and strong electronic interaction, thus contributing to the superior capacity retentions at subzero temperatures.

Cross-linked amorphous potassium titanate Nanobelts/Titanium carbide MXene nanoarchitectonics for efficient sodium storage at low temperature.

One of the major challenges to improving the performance of sodium-ion batteries at low temperatures is to develop effective anode materials with novel structures and fast reaction kinetics. Currently, converting electrode materials from the crystalline to amorphous state is an effective approach to fabricate the electrode material with high sodium storage performance. Herein, a three-dimensional (3D) cross-linked heterostructure with one-dimensional (1D) amorphous potassium titanate (KTiOx) nanobelts in-situ grown on two-dimensional (2D) titanium carbide (Ti2CTx) nanosheets (a-KTiOx/Ti2CTx) was fabricated through alkalization of the multilayered Ti2CTx MXene, which exhibits remarkable sodium storage performance at both room and low temperatures. The heterostructure prepared by the combination of 1D amorphous nanobelts and 2D conductive nanosheets enables efficient strain alleviation in the electrode, a high capacitive contribution to charge storage, rapid ionic diffusion kinetics, and robust electrode integrity, thus enhancing the sodium storage performance. In particular, reversible capacities of 221.9, 144.2 and 112.6 mAh/g can be achieved at 0.1 A/g after 100 cycles at 25, 0 and -25 °C, respectively. This study provides significant insights into the construction of MXene-based electrode materials for sodium storage at low temperatures.

Crosslinking Nanoarchitectonics of Nitrogen-doped Carbon/MoS2 Nanosheets/Ti3 C2 Tx MXene Hybrids for Highly Reversible Sodium Storage.

Although it is a promising sodium storage material due to its excellent electrochemical activity, small bandgap, and large interlayer spacing, layered molybdenum disulfide (MoS2 ) suffers from poor rate capability and degraded cycling life, resulting from its serious aggregation upon preparation, sluggish reaction kinetics, and structure expansion during cycling. To address these issues, a polyethyleneimine (PEI)-assisted fabrication approach was developed for the rational synthesis of an interconnected framework with nitrogen-doped carbon-confined MoS2 nanosheets/Ti3 C2 Tx MXene (MoS2 /Ti3 C2 Tx @NC), where the PEI could guide the uniform growth of MoS2 on Ti3 C2 Tx and the self-generated NC simultaneously enhanced its synergistic coupling with MoS2 /Ti3 C2 Tx , thus contributing to the improvement of charge transfer, diffusion kinetics, and structural integrity of the hybrid electrode. Consequently, the desired MoS2 /Ti3 C2 Tx @NC delivered impressive sodium storage performance, demonstrating high reversible capacities of 397.3 and 206.8 mAh g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 after 100 cycles and 0.5 A g-1 after 500 cycles, respectively. Moreover, electrochemical kinetics analysis and charge storage mechanism manifested that high capacitive contribution, facilitated Na+ transport pathways, and synergistic electronic coupling between MoS2 /Ti3 C2 Tx and NC contributed to the superior sodium storage performance.

Boosting the lithium storage performance by synergistically coupling ultrafine heazlewoodite nanoparticle with N, S co-doped carbon.

Transition metal sulfides, as an important class of inorganics, have been shown to be potential high-performance electrode candidates for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) in account of their high activity towards lithium storage, rich types and diverse structures. Despite these advantages, structure degradation related with volume variations upon electrochemical cycling restricts their further development. In this present study, a unique hybrid structure with ultrafine heazlewoodite nanoparticles (less than 10 nm) in-situ confined in nitrogen and sulfur dual-doped carbon (Ni3S2@NSC) was constructed though a facile pyrolysis process, using a novel Ni-based metal chelates as the precursor. Specifically, enhanced structure stability, shortened Li+ migration distance and improved reaction dynamics can be obtained simultaneously in the designed structure, thereby allowing to realize high lithium storage performance. Consequently, a remarkable reversible capacity of 955.9 mAh g-1 (0.1 A g-1 after 100 cycles) and a superior long-term cycling stability up to 1200 cycles (863.7 mAh g-1 at 1.0 A g-1) are obtained. Importantly, the fundamental understanding on the improved lithium storage of Ni3S2@NSC based on the synergistic coupling reveals that the combination between Ni3S2 and NSC at the hetero-interface through the doped sulfur atoms contributes to the integrity of electrode and improved kinetics.