Construction of uniform MgO nanoshells for improved high-voltage performance of Li-ion batteries.

A conformal Mg(OH) nanoshell was constructed through a wet-chemical process, where a gradual release of OH as the precipitating agent was designed to ensure the heterogeneous growth of the coating species. Such a coating treatment was found to be efficient in improving the structural stability and electrochemical stability of a 5 V LiNiMnO cathode.

Surface Lattice Modulation Enables Stable Cycling of High-Loading All-solid-state Batteries at High Voltages.

Halide solid electrolytes, known for their high ionic conductivity at room temperature and good oxidative stability, face notable challenges in all-solid-state Li-ion batteries (ASSBs), especially with unstable cathode/solid electrolyte (SE) interface and increasing interfacial resistance during cycling. In this work, we have developed an Al-doped, cation-disordered epitaxial nanolayer on the LiCoO surface by reacting it with an artificially constructed AlPO nanoshell; this lithium-deficient layer featuring a rock-salt-like phase effectively suppresses oxidative decomposition of LiInCl electrolyte and stabilizes the cathode/SE interface at 4.5 V.

Integrated Surface Modulation of Ultrahigh Ni Cathode Materials for Improved Battery Performance.

Ni-rich layered cathodes with ultrahigh nickel content (≥90%), for example LiNi Co O (NC0.9), are promising for next-generation high-energy Li-ion batteries (LIBs), but face stability issues related to structural degradation and side reactions during the electrochemical process. Here, surface modulation is demonstrated by integrating a Li -conductive nanocoating and gradient lattice doping to stabilize the active cathode efficiently for extended cycles.

Surface Lattice Modulation through Chemical Delithiation toward a Stable Nickel-Rich Layered Oxide Cathode.

Nickel-rich layered oxides (NLOs) are considered as one of the most promising cathode materials for next-generation high-energy lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), yet their practical applications are currently challenged by the unsatisfactory cyclability and reliability owing to their inherent interfacial and structural instability. Herein, we demonstrate an approach to reverse the unstable nature of NLOs through surface solid reaction, by which the reconstructed surface lattice turns stable and robust against both side reactions and chemophysical breakdown, resulting in improved cycling performance. Specifically, conformal La(OH) nanoshells are built with their thicknesses controlled at nanometer accuracy, which act as a Li capturer and induce controlled reaction with the NLO surface lattices, thereby transforming the particle crust into an epitaxial layer with localized Ni/Li disordering, where lithium deficiency and nickel stabilization are both achieved by transforming oxidative Ni into stable Ni.

A template-free assembly of Cu,N-codoped hollow carbon nanospheres as low-cost and highly efficient peroxidase nanozymes.

Developing carbon-based materials with high catalytic performance and sensitivity has significance in low-cost and highly efficient nanozymes. Herein, for the first time, Cu,N-codoped hollow carbon nanospheres (CuNHCNs) with highly active Cu-Nx sites were successfully assembled through a template-free strategy, in which Cu-poly(-phenylenediamine) (Cu-PmPD) nanospheres were utilized as the source of Cu, N and C. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of the hollow spherical structure and optimized composition, the CuNHCN exhibits high affinity for 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine and HO with 0.

Synergistic effect of Mn doping and hollow structure boosting Mn-CoP/CoP nanotubes as efficient bifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting.

The sluggish kinetic of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) severely hampers the commercial application of electrochemical water splitting, promoting the urgent exploration of high-efficient bifunctional electrocatalysts. Heteroatom doping and structure engineering have been identified as the most effective strategies to boost the catalytic activity of electrocatalysts. Herein, Mn doping and hollow structure were integrated in the design of Co-based transition metal phosphide catalyst to prepare Mn-CoP/CoP nanotubes (denoted as Mn-CP NTs) by a facile template-free method.

Advancing to 4.6 V Review and Prospect in Developing High-Energy-Density LiCoO Cathode for Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Layered LiCoO (LCO) is one of the most important cathodes for portable electronic products at present and in the foreseeable future. It becomes a continuous push to increase the cutoff voltage of LCO so that a higher capacity can be achieved, for example, a capacity of 220 mAh g at 4.6 V compared to 175 mAh g at 4.

Accurately Localizing Multiple Nanoparticles in a Multishelled Matrix Through Shell-to-Core Evolution for Maximizing Energy-Storage Capability.

Robust and fast lithium energy storage with a high energy density is highly desired to accelerate the market adoption of electric vehicles. To realize such a goal requires the development of electrode materials with a high capacity, however, such electrode materials suffer from huge volume expansion and induced short cycling life. Here, using tin (Sn) as an example, an ideal structure is designed to effectively solve these problems by separately localizing multiple Sn nanoparticles in a nitrogen-doped carbon hollow multishelled structure with duplicated layers for carbon shell (Sn NPs@N C HoMS-DL).

Anion Doping for Layered Oxides with a Solid-Solution Reaction for Potassium-Ion Battery Cathodes.

The development of potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) is challenged by the shortage of stable cathode materials capable of reversibly hosting the large-sized K (1.38 Å), which is prone to cause severe structural degradation and complex phase evolution during the potassiation/depotassiation process. Here, we identified that anionic doping of the layered oxides for PIBs is effective to combat their capacity fading at high voltage (>4.

Construction of LiPO nanoshells for the improved electrochemical performance of a Ni-rich cathode material.

A LiPO nanocoating around a nickel-rich cathode material was successfully constructed controlling the reaction between the electrode material and a preformed phosphorus-containing polymeric nanoshell; this not only effectively tackles the alkali residue challenge, but it also contributes to much-improved electrochemical performance being shown by a high-energy cathode.

Coordination-Assisted Precise Construction of Metal Oxide Nanofilms for High-Performance Solid-State Batteries.

The application of solid-state batteries (SSBs) is challenged by the inherently poor interfacial contact between the solid-state electrolyte (SSE) and the electrodes, typically a metallic lithium anode. Building artificial intermediate nanofilms is effective in tackling this roadblock, but their implementation largely relies on vapor-based techniques such as atomic layer deposition, which are expensive, energy-intensive, and time-consuming due to the monolayer deposited per cycle. Herein, an easy and low-cost wet-chemistry fabrication process is used to engineer the anode/solid electrolyte interface in SSBs with nanoscale precision.

Precise surface control of cathode materials for stable lithium-ion batteries.

The increasing demand for high-energy Li-ion batteries (LIBs) continues to push the development of electrode materials, particularly cathode materials, towards their capacity limits. Despite the enormous success, the stability and reliability of LIBs are becoming a serious concern due to the much-aggravated side reactions between electrode materials and organic electrolytes. How to stabilize the cathode/electrolyte interface is therefore an imperative and urgent task drawing considerable attention from both academia and industry.

A General Synthesis Strategy for Hollow Metal Oxide Microspheres Enabled by Gel-Assisted Precipitation.

Hollow metal oxide microspheres (HMMs) have drawn enormous attention in different research fields. Reliable and scalable synthetic protocols applicable for a large variety of metal oxides are in emergent demand. Here we demonstrated that polymer hydrogel, such as the resorcinol formaldehyde (RF) one, existed as an efficient synthetic platform to build HMMs.

High-Performance Cathode Materials for Potassium-Ion Batteries: Structural Design and Electrochemical Properties.

Due to the obvious advantage in potassium reserves, potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) are now receiving increasing research attention as an alternative energy storage system for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Unfortunately, the large size of K makes it a challenging task to identify suitable electrode materials, particularly cathode ones that determine the energy density of PIBs, capable of tolerating the serious structural deformation during the continuous intercalation/deintercalation of K . It is therefore of paramount importance that proper design principles of cathode materials be followed to ensure stable electrochemical performance if a practical application of PIBs is expected.

Manipulating Particle Chemistry for Hollow Carbon-based Nanospheres: Synthesis Strategies, Mechanistic Insights, and Electrochemical Applications.

Hollow carbonbased nanospheres (HCNs) have been demonstrated to show promising potential in a large variety of research fields, particularly electrochemical devices for energy conversion/storage. The current synthetic protocols for HCNs largely rely on template-based routes (TBRs), which are conceptually straightforward in creating hollow structures but challenged by the time-consuming operations with a low yield in product as well as serious environmental concerns caused by hazardous etching agents. Meanwhile, they showed inadequate ability to build complex carbon-related architectures.

Spherical Mesoporous Metal Oxides with Tunable Orientation Enabled by Growth Kinetics Control.

Recent advances in spherical mesoporous metal oxides (SMMOs) have demonstrated their enormous potential in a large variety of research fields. However, a direct creation of these materials with precise control on their key shape features, particularly pore architectures, remains a major challenge as compared to the widely explored counterpart of silica. Here, using AlO as an example, we identified that deposition kinetics in solution played an essential role in the construction of different SMMOs.

Solid-Solution-Based Metal Alloy Phase for Highly Reversible Lithium Metal Anode.

Lithium metal batteries are vital devices for high-energy-density energy storage, but the Li metal anode is highly reactive with electrolyte and forms uncontrolled dendrite that can cause undesirable parasitic reactions and, thus, poor cycling stability and raise safety concerns. Despite remarkable progress to partially solve these issues, the Li metal still plates at the electrode/electrolyte interface where the parasitic reactions and dendrite formation invariably occur. Here, we demonstrate the inward-growth plating of Li atoms into a metal foil of thickness of tens of micrometers while avoiding surface deposition, which is driven by the reversible solid-solution-based alloy phase change.

Dielectric Polarization in Inverse Spinel-Structured Mg TiO Coating to Suppress Oxygen Evolution of Li-Rich Cathode Materials.

High-energy Li-rich layered cathode materials (≈900 Wh kg ) suffer from severe capacity and voltage decay during cycling, which is associated with layered-to-spinel phase transition and oxygen redox reaction. Current efforts mainly focus on surface modification to suppress this unwanted structural transformation. However, the true challenge probably originates from the continuous oxygen release upon charging.

Light-Driven Crawling of Molecular Crystals by Phase-Dependent Transient Elastic Lattice Deformation.

The light-driven crawling of a molecular crystal that can form three phases, (α, β, and γ) is presented. Laser irradiation of the molecular crystal can generate phase-dependent transient elastic lattice deformation. The resulting elastic lattice deformation that follows scanning irradiation of a laser can actuate the different phases of molecular crystal to move with different velocity and direction.

Pitch-Derived Soft Carbon as Stable Anode Material for Potassium Ion Batteries.

Potassium ion batteries (KIBs) have emerged as a promising energy storage system, but the stability and high rate capability of their electrode materials, particularly carbon as the most investigated anode ones, become a primary challenge. Here, it is identified that pitch-derived soft carbon, a nongraphitic carbonaceous species which is paid less attention in the battery field, holds special advantage in KIB anodes. The structural flexibility of soft carbon makes it convenient to tune its crystallization degree, thereby modulating the storage behavior of large-sized K in the turbostratic carbon lattices to satisfy the need in structural resilience, low-voltage feature, and high transportation kinetics.

High-Performance Cathode of Sodium-Ion Batteries Enabled by a Potassium-Containing Framework of KMnFeTiO.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) are promising candidates for large-scale electric energy storage with abundant sodium resources. However, their development is challenged by the availability of satisfactory cathode materials with stable framework to accommodate the transportation of large-sized Na (1.02 Å), whose continuous insertion/extraction can easily cause irreversible volumetric deformation in the crystalline material, leading to inevitable structural failure and capacity fading.

Facile Synthesis of Hollow Carbon Nanospheres and Their Potential as Stable Anode Materials in Potassium-Ion Batteries.

Hollow carbon nanospheres (HCNs) have found broad applications in a large variety of application fields. Unfortunately, HCNs are known for their tedious operations and are incompetent for scalable synthesis for those widely adopted nanocasting-based routes. Here, we report a facile and highly efficient method for the creation of hollow carbon structures by tuning the growth kinetics of its polymeric precursor.

In Situ Coating Graphdiyne for High-Energy-Density and Stable Organic Cathodes.

The preparation of organic small-molecule cathodes is simple and low-cost; however, their low conductivity and molecular dissolution are two key issues that mean their energy density and power performance are far lower than those of inorganic batteries, thus hindering their practical application. To develop an effective coating technology is the key to obtain high-performance organic batteries. A general method of in situ weaving all-carbon graphdiyne nanocoatings is demonstrated.