Versatile Interfacial Self-Assembly of Ti₃C₂T_<i>x</i> MXene Based Composites with Enhanced Kinetics for Superior Lithium and Sodium Storage.

Abstract

Exploring nanostructured transition-metal sulfide anode materials with excellent electrical conductivity is the key point for high-performance alkali metal ion storage devices. Herein, we propose a powerful bottom-up strategy for the construction of a series of sandwich-structured materials by a rapid interfacial self-assembly approach. Oleylamine could act as a functional reagent to guarantee that the nanomaterials self-assemble with MXene. Benefiting from the small size of Co-NiS nanorods, excellent conductivity of MXene, and sandwiched structure of the composite, the Co-NiS/MXene composite could deliver a high discharge capacity of 911 mAh g^-1 at 0.1 A g^-1 for lithium-ion storage. After 200 cycles at 0.1 A g^-1, a high specific capacity of 1120 mAh g^-1 could be still remaining, indicating excellent cycling stability. For sodium-ion storage, the composite exhibits high specific capacity of 541 mAh g^-1 at 0.1 A g^-1 and excellent rate capability (263 mAh g^-1 at 5 A g^-1). This work offers a straightforward strategy to design and construct MXene-based anode nanomaterials with sandwiched structure for high-performance alkali metal ion storage and even in other fields.