Defect engineering of high-loading single-atom catalysts for electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction

Electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)provides an attractive approach to carbon capture and utilization for the production high-value-added products.However,CO_(2)RR still suffers from poor selectivity and low current density due to its sluggish kinetics and multitudinous reaction pathways.Single-atom catalysts(SACs)demonstrate outstanding activity,excellent selectivity,and remarkable atom utilization efficiency,which give impetus to the search for electrocatalytic processes aiming at high selectivity.There appears significant activity in the development of efficient SACs for CO_(2)RR,while the density of the atomic sites remains a considerable barrier to be overcome.To construct high-metal-loading SACs,aggregation must be prevented,and thus novel strategies are required.The key to creating high-density atomically dispersed sites is designing enough anchoring sites,normally defects,to stabilize the highly mobile separated metal atoms.In this review,we summarized the advances in developing high-loading SACs through defect engineering,with a focus on the synthesis strategies to achieve high atomic site loading.Finally,the future opportunities and challenges for CO_(2)RR in the area of high-loading single-atom electrocatalysts are also discussed.

One-time sintering process to modify xLi2MnO3(1-x)LiMO2 hollow architecture and studying their enhanced electrochemical performances

To solve the critical problems of lithium rich cathode materials, e.g., structure instability and short cycle life, we have successfully prepared a ZrO2-coated and Zr-doping xLi2MnO3·(1–x)LiMO2 hollow architecture via one-time sintering process. The modified structural materials as lithium-ion cathodes present good structural stability and superior cycle performance in LIBs. The discharge capacity of the ZrO2-coated and Zr-doped hollow pristine is 220 mAh g-1 at the 20th cycle at 0.2 C(discharge capacity loss, 2.7%)and 150 m Ah g-1 at the 100 th cycle at 1 C(discharge capacity loss, 17.7%), respectively. However, hollow pristine electrode only delivers 203 m Ah g-1 at the 20 th cycle at 0.2 C and 124 mAh g-1 at the 100 th cycle at 1 C, respectively, and the corresponding to capacity retention is 92.2% and 72.8%, respectively.Diffusion coefficients of modified hollow pristine electrode are much higher than that of hollow pristine electrode after 100 cycles(approach to 1.4 times). In addition, we simulate the adsorption reaction of HF on the surface of ZrO2-coated layer by the first-principles theory. The calculations prove that the adsorption energy of HF on the surface of ZrO2-coated layer is about-1.699 e V, and the ZrO2-coated layer could protect the hollow spherical xLi2MnO3·(1–x)LiMO2 from erosion by HF. Our results would be applicable for systematic amelioration of high-performance lithium rich material for anode with the respect of practical application.

A novelty strategy induced pinning effect and defect structure in Ni-rich layered cathodes towards boosting its electrochemical performance

Layered Ni-rich transition metal oxide is treated as the most promising alternative cathode due to their high-capacity and flexible composition.However,the severe lattice strain and slow Li-ion migration kinetics severely restrict their practical application.Herein,a novelty strategy induced pinning effect and defect structure in layered Ni-rich transition metal oxide cathodes is proposed via a facile cation(iron ion)/anion(polyanion)co-doping method.Subsequently,the effects of pinning effect and defect structure on element valence state,crystal structure,morphology,lattice strain,and electrochemical performance during lithiation/delithiation are systematically explored.The detailed characterizations(soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy(sXAS),in-situ X-ray diffraction(XRD),etc.)and density functional theory(DFT)calculation demonstrate that the pinning effects built-in LiNi_(0.9)Co_(0.05)Mn_(0.05)O_(2)materials by the dual-site occupation of iron ions on lithium and transition metal sites effectively alleviate the abrupt lattice strain caused by an unfavorable phase transition and the subsequent induction of defect structures in the Li layer can greatly reduce the lithium-ion diffusion barrier.Therefore,the modified LiNi_(0.9)Co_(0.05)Mn_(0.05)O_(2)exhibits a high-capacity of 206.5 mAh g^(-1)and remarkably enhanced capacity retention of 93.9%after 100 cycles,far superior to~14.1%of the pristine cathodes.Besides,an excellent discharge capacity of 180.1 mAh g^(-1)at 10 C rate is maintained,illustrating its remarkable rate capability.This work reports a pinning effect and defect engineering method to suppress the lattice strain and alleviate lithium-ion kinetic barriers in the Ni-rich layered cathodes,providing a roadmap for understanding the fundamental mechanism of an intrinsic activity modulation and structural design of layered cathode materials.

External-to-internal synergistic strategy to enable multi-scale stabilization of LiCoO_(2)at high-voltage

High-voltage LiCoO_(2)(LCO)offers a prelude to breaking the bottleneck of the energy density of lithium-ion batteries,however,LiCoO_(2)is subject to serious structural and interfacial degradation above voltages>4.55 V(vs.Li/Li^(+)).Herein,an in-situ Li_(6.25)La_(3)Zr_(2)A_(l0.25)O_(12)(LLZAO)layer is constructed on the LCO surface to achieve operating voltage at 4.6 V.The detailed characterizations(ex-situ XRD,ex-situ Raman,DFT,etc.)reveal that the LLZAO layer greatly enhances Li+conductivity attributed to the ionconducting layer on the surface/interface,and closely combines with LiCoO_(2)particle to ensure stable cathode/electrolyte interface,thus suppressing the highly reactive Co^(4+)and O^(-)triggered surface side reactions at high-voltage.Moreover,the introduction of La^(3+)/Zr^(4+)/Al^(3+)with a larger ionic radius(La^(3+)/Zr^(4+)are larger than Co^(3+))and weaker electronegativity(La/Zr/Al are weaker than Co)into Co^(3+)sites readjusts the electron cloud density between Co–O–Li,which reinforces the Co–O bond and widens the band-center gap of Co 3d and O 2p,thus restraining the detrimental phase transition(from H3 to H1-3 phase)and the formation of Co_(3)O_(4)spinel phase(attributed to lattice oxygen release),subsequently alleviating the particle cracking and structural collapse during repeated Li^(+)de/intercalation.Therefore,after 100 cycles at 3.0–4.6 V,LCO@1.0LLZAO exhibits a superior discharge capacity of 188.5 m A h g^(-1),with a capacity retention of 85.1%.The above research has brought about meaningful guidance for the evolution of cathode materials with high voltage.

Suppress voltage decay of lithium-rich materials by coating layers with different crystalline states

Li-rich oxides are considered as the most commercial potential cathode materials due to the high theoretical specific discharge capacity. Here, ZrO_(2) in different crystalline states are applied as the coating layers to enhance the electrochemical performance of hollow Li[Li_(0.2)Mn_(0.54)Ni_(0.13)Co_(0.13)]O_(2) materials.Meanwhile, a series of characterizations(XRD, SEM, TEM, EDX etc.) are conducted to compare the effects of ZrO_(2) coating layer with different crystalline states on the host material. The results elucidate that the Li-rich Mn-based material with the polycrystal ZrO_(2) coating layer has a slight advantage in rate performance, while the host material with the single crystal ZrO_(2)-coating layer has a better cycling performance and effectively suppresses voltage decay with the effect of excellently inhibiting layered to spinel-like phase transition and metal dissolution during charging and discharging process.

The Multiple Modification Road of Li-Rich Manganese-Based Cathode Materials

Li-rich manganese-based cathode materials(LR) are considered as excellent cathode materials for a new generation of lithium-ion batteries causes their outstanding electrochemical performance, friendly price, and environmental friendliness. But defects such as rapid voltage decay and loss of lattice oxygen limit their applications. The electrochemical performance of LR has to be improved by means of modification. The previous single modification methods like element doping, surface coating, structure design, etc. can only optimize the electrochemical performance of LR from one aspect. Recently, multiple modifications,which can combine the advantages of multiple modifications, have been favored by researchers. Here, we comprehensively review the recent progress of multiple modification of LR based on the combination of different modification means. The review and summary of the multiple modification of LR will play a guiding role in its development in the future.

Structural self-reconstruction strategy empowering Ni-rich layered cathodes with low-strain for superior cyclabilities

The key to hindering the commercial application of Ni-rich layered cathode is its severe structural and interface degradation during the undesired phase transition(hexagonal to hexagonal(H2→H3)),degenerating from the build-up of mechanical strain and undesired parasitic reactions.Herein,a perovskite Li_(0.35)La_(0.55)TiO_(3)(LLTO)layer is built onto Ni-rich cathodes crystal to induce layered@spinel@perovskite heterostructure to solve the root cause of capacity fade.Intensive exploration based on structure characterizations,in situ X-ray diffraction techniques,and first-principles calculations demonstrate that such a unique heterostructure not only can improve the ability of the host structure to withstand the mechanical strain but also provides fast diffusion channels for lithium ions as well as provides a protective barrier against electrolyte corrosion.Impressively,the LLTO modified LiNi_(0.9)Co_(0.05)Mn_(0.05)O_(2)cathode manifests an unexpected cyclability with an extremely high-capacity retention of≈94.6%after 100 cycles,which is superior to the pristine LiNi_(0.9)Co_(0.05)Mn_(0.05)O_(2)(79.8%).Furthermore,this modified electrode also shows significantly enhanced cycling stability even withstanding a high cut-off voltage of 4.6 V.This surface self-reconstruction strategy provides deep insight into the structure/interface engineering to synergistically stabilize structure stability and regulate the physicochemical properties of Ni-rich cathodes,which will also unlock a new perspective of surface interface engineering for layered cathode materials.