‘Electron pump’ of homo-interface enhancing d/p-band center proximity for zinc storage

Jianghuan Li, Qiulong Guan, Yuchen Li, Penghao Chai, Shaohua Zhang, Lijie Li, Lixia Bao, Jiong Peng*, Xin Li

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The progress of manganese-based materials as cathode materials for aqueous Zn-ion batteries (ZIBs) has encountered considerable challenges due to their inadequate conductivity and structural deformation during cycling. Herein, it is shown that by combining α-MnO2 with δ-MnO2 to construct an α-MnO2@δ-MnO2 homojunction, acting as “electron pump” to significantly improve electrical conductivity and ion transport dynamics, the electron transfer in homo-interface is accelerated. Meanwhile, the d/p-band center proximity is enhanced to adjust the ion adsorption energy to thermoneutral value, which promotes the kinetics of ion absorption and desorption, rapidly rejuvenating the electrochemically active surface area for subsequent adsorption and further enhancing the cyclic stability of the material. Consequently, the Zn/α-MnO2@δ-MnO2 battery exhibits one of the highest capacities of 402 mAh g−1 at the current of 200 mA g−1 and maintains capacity retention of 84 % over 1000 cycles at 1000 mA g−1. This prominent electrochemical performance suggests that the homo-interface in MnO2 may indicate the future advancement directions in advanced cathode materials for ZIBs.

Original languageEnglish
Article number149205
JournalChemical Engineering Journal
Volume483
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2024

Keywords

  • Aqueous zinc ion batteries
  • D/p-band center
  • Homo-interface
  • MnO

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