High-Performance Wide-Temperature Zinc-Ion Batteries with K+/C3N4 Co-Intercalated Ammonium Vanadate Cathodes
Daming Chen, Jimin Fu, Yang Ming, Wei Cai, Yidi Wang, Xin Hu, Rujun Yu, Ming Yang, Yixin Hu, Benjamin Tawiah, Shuo Shi, Haining Wu, Zijian Li, Bin Fei
Abstract
Abstract NH 4 V 4 O 10 (NVO) is considered a promising cathode material for aqueous zinc-ion batteries due to its high theoretical capacity. However, its practical application is limited by irreversible deamination, structural collapse, and sluggish reaction kinetics during cycling. Herein, K + and C 3 N 4 co-intercalated NVO (KNVO-C 3 N 4 ) nanosheets with expanded interlayer spacing are synthesized for the first time to achieve high-rate, stable, and wide-temperature cathodes. Molecular dynamics and experimental results confirm that there is an optimal C 3 N 4 content to achieve higher reaction kinetics. The synergistic effect of K + and C 3 N 4 co-intercalation significantly reduces the electrostatic interaction between Zn 2+ and the [VO n ] layer, improves the specific capacity and cycling stability. Consequently, the KNVO-C 3 N 4 electrode displays outstanding electrochemical performance at room temperature and under extreme environments. It exhibits excellent rate performance (228.4 mAh g −1 at 20 A g −1 ), long-term cycling stability (174.2 mAh g −1 after 10,000 cycles at 20 A g −1 ), and power/energy density (210.0 Wh kg −1 at 14,200 W kg −1 ) at room temperature. Notably, it shows remarkable storage performance at − 20 °C (111.3 mAh g −1 at 20 A g −1 ) and 60 °C (208.6 mAh g −1 at 20 A g −1 ). This strategy offers a novel approach to developing high-performance cathodes capable of operating under extreme temperatures.