Highly Sodiophilic Heterostructures Toward Dendrite‐Free Sodium Metal Batteries
Yongshi Yu, Yongshi Yu, Shitan Xu, Yang Yang, Yu Yao, Ghulam Ali, Zetian Tao, Xianhong Rui, Yan Yu, Yan Yu
Abstract
Abstract The utilization of Al current collector for the sodium deposition is considered ideal for achieving a low‐cost, high‐energy‐density sodium metal battery. However, the poor affinity between sodium and Al leads to uneven sodium plating/stripping, which poses a significant challenge in the pursuit of a stable sodium metal anode. Herein, a heterostructure (V/VO x )‐modified Al current collector is proposed, which effectively enables a highly reversible Na plating/stripping process, and inhibits Na dendrites growth. Experimental results and theoretical calculations demonstrate that the V/VO x @Al not only exhibits strong sodiophilicity, but also ensures a uniform current density distribution. Thanks to these merits, the assembled cells demonstrate excellent performances with low nucleation overpotential (11 mV at 1 mA cm −2 ), and long cycle life (2750 h) with minimal voltage polarization (13 mV at 1 mA cm −2 ). More impressively, the assembled full cell displays remarkable stability, sustaining 1400 cycles at 10 C. This work provides valuable insights for the development of more stable sodium metal batteries.