Controllable Regulation of the Oxygen Redox Process in Lithium-Oxygen Batteries by High-Configuration-Entropy Spinel with an Asymmetric Octahedral Structure.

Tian, Guilei; Xu, Haoyang; Wang, Xinxiang; Wen, Xiaojuan; Liu, Pengfei; Liu, Sheng; Zeng, Ting; Fan, Fengxia et al. · ACS Nano · 2024

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Designing bifunctional electrocatalysts to boost oxygen redox reactions is critical for high-performance lithium-oxygen batteries (LOBs). In this work, high-entropy spinel (Co<sub>0.2</sub>Mn<sub>0.2</sub>Ni<sub>0.2</sub>Fe<sub>0.2</sub>Cr<sub>0.2</sub>)<sub>3</sub>O<sub>4</sub> (HEOS) is fabricated by modulating the internal configuration entropy of spinel and studied as the oxygen electrode catalyst in LOBs. Under the high-entropy atomic environment, the Co-O octahedron in spinel undergoes asymmetric deformation, and the reconfiguration of the electron structure around the Co sites leads to the upward shift of the d-orbital centers of the Co sites toward the Fermi level, which is conducive to the strong adsorption of redox intermediate LiO<sub>2</sub> on the surface of the HEOS, ultimately forming a layer of a highly dispersed Li<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> thin film. Thin-film Li<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> is beneficial for ion diffusion and electron transfer at the electrode-electrolyte interface, which makes the product easy to decompose during the charge process, ultimately accelerating the kinetics of oxygen redox reactions in LOBs. Based on the above advantages, HEOS-based LOBs deliver high discharge/charge capacity (12.61/11.72 mAh cm<sup>-2</sup>) and excellent cyclability (424 cycles). This work broadens the way for the design of cathode catalysts to improve oxygen redox kinetics in LOBs.