Self-Template Construction of Hierarchical Bi@C Microspheres as Competitive Wide Temperature-Operating Anodes for Superior Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Wang, Yan; Kuang, Yongxin; Cui, Jie; Xu, Xijun; Li, Fangkun; Wu, Yiwen; Sun, Zhaoyu; Fan, Weizhen et al. · Nano Lett · 2024

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Huge volume changes of bismuth (Bi) anode leading to rapid capacity hindered its practical application in sodium-ion batteries (SIBs). Herein, porous Bi@C (P-Bi@C) microspheres consisting of self-assembled Bi nanosheets and carbon shells were constructed via a hydrothermal method combined with a carbothermic reduction. The optimized P-Bi@C-700 (annealed at 700 °C) demonstrates 359.8 mAh g<sup>-1</sup> after 1500 cycles at 1 A g<sup>-1</sup>. <i>In situ/ex situ</i> characterization and density functional theory calculations verified that this P-Bi@C-700 relieves the volume expansion, facilitates Na<sup>+</sup>/electron transport, and possesses an alloying-type storage mechanism. Notably, P-Bi@C-700 also achieved 360.8 and 370.3 mAh g<sup>-1</sup> at 0.05 A g<sup>-1</sup> under 0 and 60 °C conditions, respectively. Na<sub>3</sub>V<sub>2</sub>(PO<sub>4</sub>)<sub>3</sub>//P-Bi@C-700 exhibits a capacity of 359.7 mAh g<sup>-1</sup> after 260 cycles at 1 A g<sup>-1</sup>. These hierarchical microspheres effectively moderate the volume fluctuation, preserving structural reversibility, thereby achieving superior Na<sup>+</sup> storage performance. This self-template strategy provides insight into designing high-volumetric capacity alloy-based anodes for SIBs.