A Low‐Cost and Environmentally Friendly Mixed Polyanionic Cathode for Sodium‐Ion Storage

Sodium‐ion batteries (NIBs) are the most promising alternatives to lithium‐ion batteries in the development of renewable energy sources. The advancement of NIBs depends on the exploration of new electrode materials and fundamental understanding of working mechanisms. Herein, via experimental and simulation methods, we develop a mixed polyanionic compound, Na₂Fe(C₂O₄)SO₄?H₂O, as a cathode for NIBs. Thanks to its rigid three dimensional framework and the combined inductive effects from oxalate and sulfate, it delivered reversible Na insertion/desertion at average discharging voltages of 3.5 and 3.1 V for 500 cycles with Coulombic efficiencies of ca. 99 %. In situ synchrotron X‐ray measurements and DFT calculations demonstrate the Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺ redox reactions contribute to electron compensation during Na⁺ desertion/insertion. The study suggests mixed polyanionic frameworks may provide promising materials for Na ion storage with the merits of low cost and environmental friendliness.     

In Situ Electropolymerization Enables Ultrafast Long Cycle Life and High‐Voltage Organic Cathodes for Lithium Batteries

Organic cathode materials have attracted extensive attention because of their diverse structures, facile synthesis, and environmental friendliness. However, they often suffer from insufficient cycling stability caused by the dissolution problem, poor rate performance, and low voltages. An in situ electropolymerization method was developed to stabilize and enhance organic cathodes for lithium batteries. 4,4′,4′′‐Tris(carbazol‐9‐yl)‐triphenylamine (TCTA) was employed because carbazole groups can be polymerized under an electric field and they may serve as high‐voltage redox‐active centers. The electropolymerized TCTA electrodes demonstrated excellent electrochemical performance with a high discharge voltage of 3.95 V, ultrafast rate capability of 20 A g^?1, and a long cycle life of 5000 cycles. Our findings provide a new strategy to address the dissolution issue and they explore the molecular design of organic electrode materials for use in rechargeable batteries.     

Development of Magnesium Anode-Based Transient Primary Batteries

Biodegradable primary batteries, also known as transient batteries, are essential to realize autonomous biodegradable electronic devices with high performance and advanced functionality. In this work, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc – metals that exist as trace elements in the human body – were tested as materials for biomedical transient electronic devices. Different full cell combinations of Mg and X (where X = Cu, Fe, and Zn and the anodized form of the metals) with phosphate buffered saline (PBS) as electrolyte were studied. To form the cathodes, metal foils were anodized galvanostatically at a current density of 2.0 mA cm⁻² for 30 mins. Electrochemical measurements were then conducted for each electrode combination to evaluate full cell battery performance. Results showed that the Mg−Cu_anodized chemistry has the highest power density at 0.99 mW/cm². Nominal operating voltages of 1.26 V for the first 0.50 h and 0.63 V for the next 3.7 h were observed for Mg−Cu_anodized which was discharged at a current density of 0.70 mA cm⁻². Among the materials tested, Mg−Cu_anodized exhibited the best discharge performance with an average specific capacity of 2.94 mAh cm⁻², which is comparable to previous reports on transient batteries.     

掺钪钨粉的制备研究

采用液-固掺杂工艺,以Sc(NO3)3水溶液制备了Sc2O3掺杂的钨粉,研究了所获钨粉的形貌、Sc2O3的分布。扫描电镜显示掺杂钨粉颗粒表面和裂缝中均匀附着了Sc2O3粉末,选区能谱分析证明Sc2O3在钨颗粒的表面覆盖均匀。Sc2O3与钨接触面增多,增大了钪与钨的结合力,该掺杂钨粉能够用于制备热电子发射均匀、抗离子轰击能力强的含钪钡钨阴极。     

Advanced Concentration Gradient Cathode Material with Two‐Slope for High‐Energy and Safe Lithium Batteries

Li[Ni_0.65Co_0.13Mn_0.22]O₂ cathode with two‐sloped full concentration gradient (TSFCG), maximizing the Ni content in the inner part of the particle and the Mn content near the particle surface, is synthesized via a specially designed batch‐type reactor. The cathode delivers a discharge capacity of 200 mAh g^?1 (4.3 V cutoff) with excellent capacity retention of 88% after 1500 cycles in a full‐cell configuration. Overall electrochemical performance of the TSFCG cathode is benchmarked against conventional cathode (CC) with same composition and commercially available Li[Ni_0.8Co_0.15Al_0.05]O₂ (NCA). The TSFCG cathode exhibits the best cycling stability, rate capability, and thermal stability of the three electrodes. Transmission electron microscopy analysis of the cycled TSFCG, CC, and NCA cathodes shows that the TSFCG electrode maintains both its mechanical and structural integrity whereas the NCA electrode nearly pulverizes due to the strain during cycling.     

Dual‐Salt Mg‐Based Batteries with Conversion Cathodes

Mg batteries as the most typical multivalent batteries are attracting increasing attention because of resource abundance, high volumetric energy density, and smooth plating/stripping of Mg anodes. However, current limitations for the progress of Mg batteries come from the lack of high voltage electrolytes and fast Mg‐insertable structure prototypes. In order to improve their energy or power density, hybrid systems combining Li‐driven cathode reaction with Mg anode process appear to be a potential solution by bypassing the aforementioned limitations. Here, FeS _x (x = 1 or 2) is employed as conversion cathode with 2–4 electron transfers to achieve a maximum energy density close to 400 Wh kg^?1, which is comparable with that of Li‐ion batteries but without serious dendrite growth and polysulphide dissolution. In situ formation of solid electrolyte interfaces on both sulfide and Mg electrodes is likely responsible for long‐life cycling and suppression of S‐species passivation at Mg anodes. Without any decoration on the cathode, electrolyte additive, or anode protection, a reversible capacity of more than 200 mAh g^?1 is still preserved for Mg/FeS₂ after 200 cycles.     

Surface-segregated, high-voltage spinel LiMn1.5Ni0.42Ga0.08O4 cathodes with superior high-temperature cyclability for lithium-ion batteries

The substitution of a small amount of Ga in the high-voltage spinel cathode LiMn_1.5Ni_0.42Ga_0.08O₄ leads to superior cyclability at room temperature and 55 °C along with higher rate capability with conventional electrolytes compared to that found with the LiMn_1.5Ni_0.5O₄ cathode. The superior performance is attributed to the segregation of the inert Ga³⁺ ions to the surface during the synthesis process, providing a robust, more stable interface with the electrolyte at the high operating voltage (~ 4.7 V), along with the stabilization of the spinel structure with a disordering of the cations in the octahedral sites.     

Hierarchical Carbon–Nitrogen Architectures with Both Mesopores and Macrochannels as Excellent Cathodes for Rechargeable Li–O2 Batteries

Lithium–oxygen batteries are attracting more and more interest; however, their poor rechargeability and low efficiency remain critical barriers to practical applications. Herein, hierarchical carbon–nitrogen architectures with both macrochannels and mesopores are prepared through an economical and environmentally benign sol–gel route, which show high electrocatalytic activity and stable cyclability over 160 cycles as cathodes for Li–O₂ batteries. Such good performance owes to the coexistence of macrochannels and mesopores in C–N hierarchical architectures, which greatly facilitate the Li⁺ diffusion and electrolyte immersion, as well as provide an effective space for O₂ diffusion and O₂/Li₂O₂ conversion. Additionally, the mechanism of oxygen reduction reactions is discussed with the N‐rich carbon materials through first‐principles computations. The lithiated pyridinic N provides excellent O₂ adsorption and activation sites, and thus catalyzes the electrode processes. Therefore, hierarchical carbon–nitrogen architectures with both macrochannels and mesopores are promising cathodes for Li–O₂ batteries.     

A NEW Ba-W DISPENSER CATHODE IMPREGNATED WITH BARIUM YTTERBATE

A new kind of Ba-W dispenser cathode impregnated with barium ytterbate has been deve-loped.It has good properties;high coefficient of secondary emission,strong ability of resisting oxygenpoisoning,high thermionic emission current density and more uniform emission on the cathode surface.The cathode is suitable for using as an electron emitter for microwave tubes,especially magnetrons.     

Harvesting Air and Light Energy via “All-in-One” Polymer Cathodes for High-Capacity,Self-Chargeable,and Multimode-Switching Zinc Batteries

Aqueous rechargeable Zinc (Zn)–polymer batteries are promising alternatives to prevalent Li-ion cells in terms of cost, safety, and rate capability but they suffer from limited specific capacity in addition to poor environmental adaptability. Herein, air and light are successfully utilized from external environments in single near-neutral two-electrode Zn batteries to enable remarkably improved electrochemical performance, fast self-charging, and switchable multimode-operation from Zn–polymer to Zn–air cells. This system is enabled by a well-designed polyaniline-nanorod-array based “all-in-one” cathode combining reversible redox capability, oxygen reduction activity, and photothermal-responsiveness. The initiative design allows perfect integration of multiple energy harvesting from ambient “air” and light, energy conversion, and storage in one single cathode. Thus, it can act as an efficient light-assisted electrically-rechargeable Zn–polymer cell featuring the highest specific capacity of 430.0 mAh g⁻¹ among all existing polymer cathodes. Without external power sources, it can be self-charged to deliver a high discharging capacity of 363.1 mAh g⁻¹ by concurrently harvesting chemical energy from air and light energy for only 20 min. It can also switch to a light-responsive Zn–air battery mode to surmount the output capacity limit of Zn–polymer battery mode for continued electricity supply.