Metal-organic frameworks and their composites for advanced lithium-ion batteries:Synthesis,progress and prospects

Metal-organic frameworks(MOFs)are among the most promising materials for lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)owing to their high surface area,periodic porosity,adjustable pore size,and controllable chemical composition.For instance,their unique porous structures promote electrolyte penetration,ions transport,and make them ideal for battery separators.Regulating the chemical composition of MOF can introduce more active sites for electrochemical reactions.Therefore,MOFs and their related composites have been extensively and thoroughly explored for LIBs.However,the reported reviews solely include the applications of MOFs in the electrode materials of LIBs and rarely involve other aspects.A systematic review of the application of MOFs in LIBs is essential for understanding the mechanism of MOFs and better designing related MOFs battery materials.This review systematically evaluates the latest developments in pristine MOFs and MOF composites for LIB applications,including MOFs as the main materials(anode,cathode,separators,and electrolytes)to auxiliary materials(coating layers and additives for electrodes).Furthermore,the synthesis,modification methods,challenges,and prospects for the application of MOFs in LIBs are discussed.

Progress in electrolyte and interface of hard carbon and graphite anode for sodiumion battery

It is essential to replace lithium-ion batteries(LIBs)from the perspective of the Earth's resources and the sustainable development of mankind.Sodium-ion batteries(SIBs)are important candidates due to their low price and abundant storage capacity.Hard carbon(HC)and graphite have important applications in anode materials of SIBs.In this review,the research progress in electrolyte and interface between HC and graphite anode for SIBs is summarized.The properties and performance of three types of widely used electrolytes(carbo nate ester,ether,and ionic liquid)with additives,as well as the formation of solid electrolyte interface(SEI),which are crucial to the reversible capacity and rate capability of HC anodes,are also discussed.In this review,the co-intercalation performance and mechanism of solvation Na+into graphite are summarized.Besides,the faced challenges and existing problems in this field are also succinctly highlighted.

The nature of irreversible phase transformation propagation in nickel-rich layered cathode for lithium-ion batteries

Ni-rich layered cathode is regarded as one of the most promising candidates to achieve lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with high energy density. However, due to the irreversible phase transformation (IPT) and its eventual propagation from surface to the bulk of the material, Ni-rich layered cathode typically suffers from severe capacity fading, structure failure, and thermal instability, which greatly hinders its mass adoption. Hence, achieving an in-depth understanding of the IPT propagation mechanism in Ni-rich layered cathode is crucial in addressing these issues. Herein, the triggering factor of IPT propagation in Ni-rich cathode is verified to be the initial surface disordered cation mixing domain covered by a thin rock-salt phase, instead of the rock-salt phase itself. According to the density functional theory (DFT) results, it is further illustrated that the metastable cation mixing domain possesses a lower Ni migration energy barrier, which facilitates the migration of Ni ions towards the Li slab, and thus driving the propagation of IPT from surface to the bulk of the material. This finding clarifies a prevailing debate regarding the surface impurity phases of Ni-rich cathode material and reveals the origin of IPT propagation, which implies the principle and its effectiveness of tuning the surface microstructure to address the structural and thermal instability issue of Ni-rich layered cathode materials.

Recent progress on MOF-derived carbon materials for energy storage

Metal-organic frameworks(MOFs)are of quite a significance in the field of inorganic-organic hybrid crystals.Especially,MOFs have attracted increasing attention in recent years due to their large specific surface area,desirable electrical conductivity,controllable porosity,tunable geometric structure,and excellent thermal/chemical stability.Some recent studies have shown that carbon materials prepared by MOFs as precursors can retain the privileged structure of MOFs,such as large specific surface area and porous structure and,in contrast,realize in situ doping with heteroatoms(eg,N,S,P,and B).Moreover,by selecting appropriate MOF precursors,the composition and morphology of the carbon products can be easily adjusted.These remarkable structural advantages enable the great potential of MOF-derived carbon as high-performance energy materials,which to date have been applied in the fields of energy storage and conversion systems.In this review,we summarize the latest advances in MOF-derived carbon materials for energy storage applications.We first introduce the compositions,structures,and synthesis methods of MOF-derived carbon materials,and then discuss their applications and potentials in energy storage systems,including rechargeable lithium/sodium-ion batteries,lithium-sulfur batteries,supercapacitors,and so forth,in detail.Finally,we put forward our own perspectives on the future development of MOF-derived carbon materials.

DFT study of solvation of Li+/Na+ in fluoroethylene carbonate/vinylene carbonate/ethylene sulfite solvents for lithium/sodium-based battery

Choosing suitable solvent is the key technology for the electrochemical performance of energy storage device.Among them,vinylene carbonate(VC),fluoroethylene carbonate(FEC),and ethylene sulfite(ES)are the potential organic electrolyte solvents for lithium/sodium battery.However,the quantitative relation and the specific mechanism of these solvents are currently unclear.In this work,density functional theory(DFT)method is employed to study the lithium/sodium ion solvation in solvents of VC,ES,and FEC.We first find that 4VC-Li+,4VC-Na+,4ES-Li+,4ES-Na+,4FEC-Li+,and 4FEC-Na+are the maximum thermodynamic stable solvation complexes.Besides,it is indicated that the innermost solvation shells are consisted of 5VC-Li+/Na+,5ES-Li+/Na+,and 5FEC-Li+/Na+.It is also indicated that the Li+solvation complexes are more stable than Na+complexes.Moreover,infrared and Raman spectrum analysis indicates that the stretching vibration of O=C peak evidently shifts to high frequency with the Li+/Na+concentration reducing in nVC-Li+/Na+and nFEC-Li+/Na+solvation complexes,and the O=C vibration peak frequency in Na+solvation complexes is higher than that of Li+complexes.The S=O stretching vibration in nES-Li+/Na+solvation complexes moves to high frequency with the decrease of the Li+/Na+concentration,the S=O vibration in nES-Na+is higher than that in nES-Li+.The study is meaningful for the design of new-type Li/Na battery electrolytes.

Embedding wasted hairs in Ti/PbO_(2) anode for efficient and sustainable electrochemical oxidation of organic wastewater

Despite of the hazardous risk of Pb^(2+) leakage, lead dioxide has been attributed as a quasi-ideal anode material with high oxygen evolution potential, excellent conductivity, good stability and low cost in electrochemical oxidation wastewater treatment technique. In this study, a novel Ti/PbO_(2) anode was fabricated by embedding raw materials that are readily and cheaply available, i.e., hairs. The structure-activity relationship of the new electrode was firstly revealed by material and electrochemical characterizations. Then different levels of pollutants (azo dye, phenol and maleic acid) were used to investigate the electrochemical oxidation performance of the new electrode. Finally, the accelerated electrode lifetime and Pb^(2+) leakage tests were carried out. Results showed that the embedded hairs changed the preferential crystallographic orientation of PbO_(2) and decreased the grain size. Hairs introduced additional roughness and active sites, and decreased the electrode impedance, especially under 5 mg/cm^(2) of embedding amount. The removal efficiencies of different target pollutants were enhanced more or less by embedding appropriate amount of hairs, depending on the current density, but loading excessive hairs had a negative effect. The accumulation of intermediate products during phenol degradation was also changed by the hairs. The new electrode could undergo ~550 h of harsh electrolysis. It is also relieved that the Pb^(2+) leakage was found to be suppressed during this long-term electrolysis process.

Effect of Tb Doping on Structural and Electrical Properties of BiFeO_3 Thin Films Prepared by Sol-Gel Technique

Bil_xTbxFe03 thin films were prepared on Sn02 （fluorine doped tin oxide） substrates by a sol-gel method. The structural and electrical properties of the BiFe03 thin films were characterized and tested. The results indicated that the diffraction peak of the Tb-doped BiFe03 films was shifted towards right as the doping amounts were increased. The structure was transformed from the rhombohedral to tetragonal/orthorhombic phase. The Bio.sgTbo.11Fe03 thin film showed the well-developed P-E loops, which enhanced remnant polarization （Pr = 88.05 μC/cm2） at room temperature. The dielectric constant and dielectric loss of Bio.sgTbo.llFe03 thin film at 100 kHz were 185 and 0.018, respectively. Furthermore, the Bio.seTbo.llFe03 thin film showed a relatively low leakage current density of 2.07×10-5 A/cm2 at an applied electric field of 150 kV/cm. The X- ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） spectra indicated that the presence of Fe2＋ ions in the Bio.egTbo.11Fe03 thin film was less than that in the pure BiFe03.

Multi-electron Reaction Materials for High-Energy-Density Secondary Batteries:Current Status and Prospective

To address increasing energy supply challenges and allow for the effective utilization of renewable energy sources,transformational and reliable battery chemistry are critically needed to obtain higher energy densities.Here,significant progress has been made in the past few decades in energetic battery systems based on the concept of multi-electron reactions to overcome existing barriers in conventional battery research and application.As a result,a systematic understanding of multi-electron chemistry is essential for the design of novel multi-electron reaction materials and the enhancement of corresponding battery performances.Based on this,this review will briefly present the advancements of multi-electron reaction materials from their evolutionary discovery from lightweight elements to the more recent multi-ion effect.In addition,this review will discuss representative multi-electron reaction chemistry and materials,including ferrates,metal borides,metal oxides,metal fluorides,lithium transition metal oxides,silicon,sulfur and oxygen.Furthermore,insertion-type,alloy-type and conversion-type multi-electron chemistry involving monovalent Li^(+) and Na^(+) cations,polyvalent Mg^(2+) and Al^(3+) cations beyond those of alkali metals as well as activated S^(2−) and O^(2−) anions are introduced in the enrichment and development of multi-electron reactions for electrochemical energy storage applications.Finally,this review will present the ongoing challenges and underpinning mechanisms limiting the performance of multi-electron reaction materials and corresponding battery systems.