Carbon-Coated MoSe/MXene Hybrid Nanosheets for Superior Potassium Storage.

Potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) are attracting intensive interest for large-scale applications due to the high natural abundance of potassium sources. However, the large radius of K makes it difficult for electrode materials to accommodate the repeated K insertion and extraction. Thus, developing high-performance electrode materials for PIBs remains a great challenge.

Metal-organic framework derived yolk-shell NiS/carbon spheres for lithium-sulfur batteries with enhanced polysulfide redox kinetics.

Yolk-shell NiS/carbon spheres (yolk-shell NiS/C) have been synthesized by one-step annealing of yolk-shell Ni-metal-organic framework spheres. In particular, both the inner yolk sphere and the outer shell of yolk-shell NiS/C can provide catalytically active sites for the redox of polysulfide confined in the yolk-shell structure, providing enhanced redox kinetics. A yolk-shell NiS/C-sulfur cathode exhibits a high rate capacity of 569 mA h g at 2C and shows excellent cycling stability, demonstrating the superiority of the yolk-shell structure.

3D Hollow α-MnO Framework as an Efficient Electrocatalyst for Lithium-Oxygen Batteries.

Lithium-oxygen (Li-O ) batteries are attracting more attention owing to their superior theoretical energy density compared to conventional Li-ion battery systems. With regards to the catalytically electrochemical reaction on a cathode, the electrocatalyst plays a key role in determining the performance of Li-O batteries. Herein, a new 3D hollow α-MnO framework (3D α-MnO ) with porous wall assembled by hierarchical α-MnO nanowires is prepared by a template-induced hydrothermal reaction and subsequent annealing treatment.

3D Interconnected MoS with Enlarged Interlayer Spacing Grown on Carbon Nanofibers as a Flexible Anode Toward Superior Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Molybdenum disulfide (MoS) has attracted extensive research interest as a fascinating anode for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) because of its high specific capacity of 670 mA h g. However, unsatisfied cycling durability and poor rate performance are two barriers that hinder MoS for practical application in SIBs. Herein, 3D interconnected MoS with enlarged interlayer spacing epitaxially grown on 1D electrospinning carbon nanofibers (denoted as MoS@CNFs) was prepared as a flexible anode for SIBs via l-cysteine-assisted hydrothermal method.

Freestanding, Hydrophilic Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Foams for Highly Compressible All Solid-State Supercapacitors.

Freestanding and highly compressible nitrogen-doped carbon foam (NCF) with excellent hydrophilicity and good electrochemical properties is prepared. Based on NCF electrodes, a high-performance all solid-state symmetric supercapacitor device is fabricated with native, full compressibility, and excellent mechanical stability, addressing two major problems in the current technology.

Flexible SnO2/N-Doped Carbon Nanofiber Films as Integrated Electrodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries with Superior Rate Capacity and Long Cycle Life.

A freestanding SnO2@N-CNF film prepared by electrospinning exhibits excellent flexibility and a high surface area of 506 m(2) g(-1). When used as an anode for lithium-ion batteries, a high reversible capacity of 754 mAh g(-1) is maintained after the 300(th) cycle at 1 A g(-1) . Even when the current density increases to 5 A g(-1), the SnO2@N-CNF still delivers 245.

Hierarchical Mesoporous/Macroporous Perovskite La0.5Sr0.5CoO3-x Nanotubes: A Bifunctional Catalyst with Enhanced Activity and Cycle Stability for Rechargeable Lithium Oxygen Batteries.

Perovskites show excellent specific catalytic activity toward both oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline solutions; however, small surface areas of the perovskites synthesized by traditional sol-gel methods lead to low utilization of catalytic sites, which gives rise to poor Li-O2 batteries performance and restricts their application. Herein, a hierarchical mesporous/macroporous perovskite La0.5Sr0.