Single-Crystal Growth of P2-Type Layered Oxides with Increased Exposure of {010} Planes for High-Performance Sodium-Ion Batteries.

An increase in the size of single-crystal particles can effectively reduce the interfacial side reactions of layered oxides for sodium-ion batteries at high voltages but may result in sluggish Na+ transport. Herein, single-crystal Na0.66Ni0.26Zn0.07Mn0.67O2 with increased proportions of {010} planes is synthesized by adding low-cost NaCl as the molten salt. With the assistance of a NaCl molten salt, the median diameter (D50) of single-crystal Na0.66Ni0.26Zn0.07Mn0.67O2 increases to 10.46 µm relative to that of the comparison sample without NaCl (6.57 µm). Electrolyte decomposition on the surface of single-crystal Na0.66Ni0.26Zn0.07Mn0.67O2 is considerably suppressed, owing to a decrease in the specific surface area. Moreover, the increased exposure of {010} planes is favorable for improving the Na+ transport kinetics of single-crystal particles. Therefore, at 100 mA g-1, single-crystal Na0.66Ni0.26Zn0.07Mn0.67O2 exhibits a high-capacity retention of 96.6% after 100 cycles, which is considerably greater than that of the comparison sample (86.8%). Moreover, the rate performance of single-crystal Na0.66Ni0.26Zn0.07Mn0.67O2 (average discharge capacity of 81.2 mAh g-1) is superior to that of the comparison sample (average discharge capacity of 61.2 mAh g-1) at 2000 mA g-1. This work provides a new approach for promoting the single-crystal growth of layered oxides for highly stable interfaces at high voltages without compromising Na+ transport kinetics.