Amorphous structure construction boosting the zinc-ion storage performance of vanadium oxyphosphate

• Published in: Surfaces and interfaces 2025-01, Vol.56, Article 105647
• Main Authors: Huang, Yihong, Wang, Xinyu, Xie, Xinqi, Cao, Hongmei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amorphous vanadium oxyphosphate; Anisotropic channels; Aqueous zinc-ion batteries; Cathode; High stability
• ISSN: 2468-0230
• DOI: 10.1016/j.surfin.2024.105647

Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) have garnered significant attention due to their inherent safety and environmental friendliness. However, it still remains many challenges to achieve desirable cathode materials with high stability and elevated voltage platforms. Excitingly, layered vanadium oxyphosphate (VOP) with high voltage platform emerges as a promising candidate for AZIBs. Nevertheless, it often undergoes structural collapse issues in aqueous electrolyte, which hinder its application. Herein, an amorphous vanadium oxyphosphate (A-VOP) was designed via a facile hydrothermal method. Notably, the structural optimization strategy efficiently alleviates the pulverization of A-VOP, and this material displays high structural stability during cycling. The capacity of A-VOP remains stable after 1000 cycles, and there is no obvious capacity reduction. Moreover, the amorphous framework can offer anisotropic ion transfer channels and shorten the ion diffusion pathways, facilitating the reaction kinetics. Meanwhile, the A-VOP can provide abundant exposed active sites. As a result, the unique structure endows the A-VOP cathode with high capacity, superior rate capability (87.7 mAh g−1 at 0.05 A g−1) and long cycle life (65.2 mAh g−1 after 2000 cycles at 5 A g−1). This work will provide an effective strategy to design high-performance vanadium-based cathode materials for AZIBs. In this work, structural optimization strategies are effective in improving the stability of the structure during the cycling process of amorphous vanadium oxyphosphate (A-VOP). Moreover, the amorphous framework can offer anisotropic ion transfer channels and shorten the ion diffusion pathways, facilitating the reaction kinetics. Meanwhile, the A-VOP can provide abundant exposed active sites. As a result, the unique structure endows the A-VOP cathode with high capacity and long cycle life. [Display omitted]