Designing interstitial boron-doped tunnel-type vanadium dioxide cathode for enhancing zinc ion storage capability

Chemical doping is a powerful method to intrinsically tailor the electrochemical properties of electrode materials.Here,an interstitial boron-doped tunnel-type VO_(2)(B)is constructed via a facile hydrothermal method.Various analysis techniques demonstrate that boron resides in the interstitial site of VO_(2)(B)and such interstitial doping can boost the zinc storage kinetics and structural stability of VO_(2)(B)cathode during cycling.Interestingly,we found that the boron doping level has a saturation limit peculiarity as proved by the quantitative analysis.Notably,the 2 at.%boron-doped VO_(2)(B)shows enhanced zinc ion storage performance with a high storage capacity of 281.7 mAh g^(-1) at 0.1 A g^(-1),excellent rate performance of 142.2 mAh g^(-1) at 20 A g^(-1),and long cycle stability up to 1000 cycles with the capacity retention of 133.3 mAh g^(-1) at 5 A g^(-1).Additionally,the successful preparation of the boron-doped tunneltype α-MnO_(2) further indicates that the interstitial boron doping approach is a general strategy,which supplies a new chance to design other types of functional electrode materials for multivalence batteries.

Enhancing water splitting via weakening H_(2) and O_(2) adsorption on NiCo-LDH@CdS due to interstitial nitrogen doping: A close look at the mechanism of electron transfer

This paper is a report on the development of a convenient approach to fabricating a very efficient hybrid photoelectrocatalyst for water splitting.This photoelectrocatalyst consists of nickel-cobalt layered double hydroxide as the core,cadmium sulfide as the shell,and nitrogen,hence NiCo-LDH@CdS-N.For the electrocatalytic activity to be improved,the H_(2) and O_(2) binding energy needs to be weakened.The interstitial nitrogen doping on NiCo-LDH@CdS can increase electrocatalytic activity to a great extent.NiCoLDH@CdS nanoparticles are obtained by subjecting to nitriding the NiCo-LDH@CdS electrode coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone nanosheets.This electrode has a large specific surface area,allows fast transfer of electrons,and exhibits long-term stability.The experimental results presented in this paper reveal that interstitial nitrogen doping largely reduces H_(2) and O_(2) binding energy and lowers the activation barrier for the formation and splitting of water.

Thermoelectric properties of Li-doped Sr_(0.7)Ba_(0.3)Nb_2O_(6-δ) ceramics

Thermoelectric properties of Li-doped Sr0.70Ba0.30Nb2O6-δ ceramics were investigated in the temperature range from 323 K to 1073 K. The electrical conductivity increases significantly after lithium interstitial doping. However, both of the magnitudes of Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity vary non-monotonically but synchronously with the doping contents, indicating that doped lithium ions may not be fully ionized and oxygen vacancy may also contribute to carriers. The lattice thermal conductivity increases firstly and then decreases as the doping content increases, which is affected by competing factors.Thermoelectric performance is enhanced by lithium interstitial doping due to the increase of the power factor and the thermoelectric figure of merit reaches maximum value （0.21 at 1073 K） in the sample Sr0.70Ba0.30Li0.10Nb2O6.

Lattice expansion enables interstitial doping to achieve a high average ZT in n-type PbS

Lead sulfide(PbS)presents large potential in thermoelectric application due to its earth-abundant S element.However,its inferior average ZT(ZTave)value makes PbS less competitive with its analogs PbTe and PbSe.To promote its thermoelectric performance,this study implements strategies of continuous Se alloying and Cu interstitial doping to synergistically tune thermal and electrical transport properties in n-type PbS.First,the lattice parameter of 5.93Åin PbS is linearly expanded to 6.03Åin PbS_(0.5)Se_(0.5)with increasing Se alloying content.This expanded lattice in Se-alloyed PbS not only intensifies phonon scattering but also facilitates the formation of Cu interstitials.Based on the PbS_(0.6)Se_(0.4)content with the minimal lattice thermal conductivity,Cu interstitials are introduced to improve the electron density,thus boosting the peak power factor,from 3.88μW cm^(−1)K^(−2)in PbS_(0.6)Se_(0.4)to 20.58μW cm^(−1)K^(−2)in PbS0.6Se0.4−1%Cu.Meanwhile,the lattice thermal conductivity in PbS_(0.6)Se_(0.4)−x%Cu(x=0-2)is further suppressed due to the strong strain field caused by Cu interstitials.Finally,with the lowered thermal conductivity and high electrical transport properties,a peak ZT~1.1 and ZTave~0.82 can be achieved in PbS_(0.6)Se_(0.4)−1%Cu at 300–773K,which outperforms previously reported n-type PbS.

Towards the optimal interstitial doping for halide perovskites

Interstitial doping has been considered as an effective strategy to passivate and immobilize the ionic defects of metal halide perovskites to enhance performance and stability of perovskite solar cells.However,high dopant dosage causes lattice distortion which results in micro-strain and subsequent phase destabilization.This highlight discusses the latest report regarding optimal interstitial doping with a multivalent alkali metal cation for perovskites and awaiting issues associated with it.

Electrochemical performance of overlithiated Li1＋xNi0.8Co0.2O2： structural and oxidation state studies

Pure, layered compounds of overlithiated Li1＋xNi0.8Co0.2O2（x = 0.05 and 0.1） were successfully prepared by a modified combustion method. XRD studies showed that cell parameters of the material decreased with increasing the lithium content. SEM revealed that the morphology of particles changed from rounded polyhedral-like crystallites to sharp-edged polyhedral crystals with more doped lithium. EDX showed that the stoichiometries of Ni and Co agrees with calculated synthesized values. Electrochemical studies revealed the overlithiated samples have improved capacities as well as cycling behavior. The sample with x = 0.05 shows the best performance with a specific capacity of 113.29 mA.h.g-1 and the best capacity retention of 92.2% over 10 cycles. XPS results showed that the binding energy of Li ls is decreased for the Li doped samples with the smallest value for the x = 0.05 sample, implying that Li＋ ions can be extracted more easily from Li1.05Ni0.8Co0.2O2 than the other stoichiometries accounting for the improved performance of the material. Considerations of core level XPS peaks for transition metals reveal the existence in several oxidation states. However, the percentage of the＋3 oxidation state of transition metals for the when x = 0.1 is the highest and the availability for charge transition from the ＋3 to＋4 state of the transition metal during deintercalation is more readily available.