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2020, Vol. 45, No. 6　Online: 15 June 2020

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Ion association tailoring SEI composition for Li metal anode protection Yitao He, Yaohui Zhang, Peng Yu, Fei Ding, Xifei Li, Zhihong Wang, Zhe Lv, Xianjie Wang, Zhiguo Liu, Xiqiang Huang 2020, 45(6): 1-6.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.033 Abstract ( 22 )   Electrolyte additives play an important role in suppressing lithium dendrites through tailoring the composition/property of the SEI,however lacking of additives can achieve high performances both in ether and carbonate electrolytes hinders further enhancement of the high voltage lithium-metal batteries.Here,lithium perchlorate (LiClO4) has been presented as an excellent additive to meet the above requirements.An optimized chemical composition of SEI can be achieved through the formation of ionic association.Our results indicate that the LiClO4 behaves like a catalyst,which promotes LiTFSI to form a better SEI to inhibit further reaction.Superior coulombic efficiencies and cycling performances were obtained both in ether and carbonate electrolytes.This study paves a new pathway for designing bi-soluble additives for safe lithium metal batteries.

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Towards high-performance lithium metal anodes via the modification of solid electrolyte interphases Zhen Hou, Jiaolong Zhang, Wenhui Wang, Qianwen Chen, Baohua Li, Chaolin Li 2020, 45(6): 7-17.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.028 Abstract ( 8 )   Li metal has been regarded as one of the most promising anodes for high-energy-density storage systems due to its high theoretical capacity and lowest electrochemical potential.Unfortunately,an unstable and non-uniform solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) deriving from the spontaneous reaction between Li metal anode and electrolyte causes uneven Li deposition,resulting in the growth of Li dendrites and low Coulombic efficiency,which have greatly hindered the practical application of Li metal batteries.Thus,the construction of a stable SEI is an effective approach to suppress the growth of Li dendrites and enhance the electrochemical performances of Li metal anode.In this review,we firstly introduce the formation process of inferior SEI of Li metal anode and the corresponding challenges caused by the unstable SEI.Next,recent progresses to modify SEI layer through the regulation of electrolyte compositions and exsitu protective coating are summarized.Finally,the remained issues,challenges,and perspectives are also proposed on the basis of current research status and progress.

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MoS2 nanorods with inner caves through synchronous encapsulation of sulfur for high performance Li-S cathodes Yikun Yi, Zechen Liu, Pu Yang, Tao Wang, Xuewen Zhao, Hongyang Huang, Yonghong Cheng, Jinying Zhang, Mingtao Li 2020, 45(6): 18-24.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.032 Abstract ( 3 )   Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries have become one of the most promising candidates for next-generation batteries owing to their high specific capacity,low cost,and environment-friendliness.Many efforts have been made to mitigate the "shuttle effect" through physical adsorption and chemical bonding.MoS2 has been proposed as a cathode material to provide effective anchoring sites for lithium polysulfides (LiPSs),but is still limited by its layer structure.Herein,we designed novel MoS2 nanorods with inner caves based on our previous work,and performed synchronous encapsulation of sulfur during the synthesis process.The outer MoS2 tubular shells physically inhibit the outward diffusion of polysulfide species while the inner particles chemically anchor the polysulfides to prevent shuttling.As the cathode matrix in Li-S batteries,the electrochemical results deliver a high initial discharge capacity of 1213 mAh g-1 for sulfur at 0.1 C.After cycling at 1 C for 300 cycles,the cells exhibit a capacity decay of only 0.076% per cycle and high average coulombic efficiency over 95%.The tubular MoS2 structure is an innovative and appealing design,which could be regarded as a prospective substrate for the improved performance of Li-S batteries.

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Methylcyclopentenyl cation mediated reaction route in methanol-to-olefins reaction over H-RUB-50 with small cavity Wenna Zhang, Shutao Xu, Yuchun Zhi, Yingxu Wei, Zhongmin Liu 2020, 45(6): 25-30.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.022 Abstract ( 8 )   Methylcyclopentenyl cations (MCP+) have been regarded as active intermediates during methanol conversion,however,their function mode in the reaction are still uncertain.In our recent report,trimethylcyclopentenyl cation (triMCP+) and its deprotonated counterpart (trimethylcyclopentadiene,triMCP) were directly captured on H-RUB-50 catalyst with small cavity by the aid of in situ 13C MAS NMR spectroscopy,and their higher catalytic reactivity were clarified by 12C/13C-CH3OH isotopic switch experiment.In this contribution,an alternative route-cyclopentadienes-based cycle was applied on methanol conversion catalyzed on the H-RUB-50,in which ethene was produced with the participation of triMCP+ as critical intermediate.Then the cyclopentadienes-based cycle was predicted to be energetically favorable for ethene formation by density functional theory (DFT) calculations.The energetic comparison of paring mechanism in the aromatics-based cycle and cyclopentadienes-based cycle with the involvements of trimethylcyclopentadienyl (triMCPdi+) and triMCP+ as the corresponding active intermediates suggests that cyclopentadienes-based cycle is a feasible route for ethene formation.Furthermore,this work highlights the importance of the steric constraint and the host-guest interaction induced by the zeolite with cavity structure in the formation of intermediates and reaction pathway.

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Glucose-derived hydrothermal carbons as energy storage booster for vanadium redox flow batteries Jiugen Qiu, Baobing Huang, Yuchuan Liu, Dongyang Chen, Zailai Xie 2020, 45(6): 31-39.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.030 Abstract ( 10 )   Fabricating of high performance electrodes by a sustainable and cost effective method is essential to the development of vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs).In this work,an effective strategy is proposed to deposit carbon nanoparticles on graphite felts by hydrothermal carbonization method.This in-situ method minimizes the drop off and aggregation of carbon nanoparticles during electrochemical testing.Such integration of felts and hydrothermal carbons (HTC) produces a new electrode that combines the outstanding electrical conductivity of felts with the effective redox active sites provided by the HTC coating layer.The presence of the amorphous carbon layers on the felts is found to be able to promote the mass/charge transfer,and create oxygenated/nitrogenated active sites and hence enhances wettability.Consequently,the most optimized electrode based on a rational approach delivers an impressive electrochemical performance toward VRFBs in wide range of current densities from 200 to 500 mA cm-2.The voltage efficiency (VE) of GFs-HTC is much higher than the VEs of the pristine GFs,especially at high current densities.It exhibits a 4.18 times increase in discharge capacity over the pristine graphite felt respectively,at a high current density of 400 mA cm-2.The enhanced performance is attributed to the abundant active sites from amorphous hydrothermal carbon,which facilitates the fast electrochemical kinetics of vanadium redox reactions.This work evidences that the glucose-derived hydrothermal carbons as energy storage booster hold great promise in practical VRFBs application.

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Capacitive charge storage enables an ultrahigh cathode capacity in aluminum-graphene battery Hanyan Xu, Hao Chen, Haiwen Lai, Zheng Li, Xiaozhong Dong, Shengying Cai, Xingyuan Chu, Chao Gao 2020, 45(6): 40-44.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.025 Abstract ( 21 )   Aluminum-graphene battery is promising for its abundant raw materials,high power density,ultralong cycle life and superior safety.However,the development of aluminum-graphene battery is currently restricted by its insufficient cathode capacity,calling for a newly developed working mechanism.In addition,an irregular constant increase of the cathode capacity was always observed during cycling,but cannot be explained based on the current understanding.Here,we observed an increase of specific capacity by 60% with stable Coulombic efficiency of 98% during 7000 cycles life of Al-graphene batteries employing AlCl3/ET3NHCl electrolyte.We demonstrated this growing cathode capacity is attributed to an increasing contribution of capacitive charge storage during cycling,because a gradually enlarged surface area as capacitive active sites is enabled by the exfoliation of graphitic cathode during the periodic intercalation process.Moreover,the graphene cathode was exfoliated more significantly in AlCl3/ET3NHCl than 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride-based electrolyte,which results from the heavier stress on the graphene layers caused by the larger intercalants in AlCl3/ET3NHCl.The common intercalation of cations with AlCl4- clusters was therefore supposed to occur during charging.This new proposed mechanism can offer the new thought for future design on high-capacity cathode of Al-ion battery.

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Porous carbon coupled with an interlaced MoP-MoS2 heterojunction hybrid for efficient hydrogen evolution reaction Qiusheng Zhou, Jianrui Feng, Xinwen Peng, Linxin Zhong, Runcang Sun 2020, 45(6): 45-51.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.010 Abstract ( 10 )   The design and development of electrocatalysts composed of non-noble-metal catalysts with both large surface area and high electrical conductivities are crucial for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER).Here,a xylose-based porous carbon is coupled with a MoS2-MoP heterojunction (MoS2-MoP/FPC) hybrid and used as a promising catalyst for HER.The hybrid is prepared by immobilizing petal-like MoS2 nanosheets on porous carbon (MoS2/FPC),followed by controlling the phosphidation in Ar/H2 to form MoS2-MoP/FPC.Red phosphorus provides the P species that can induce the construction of the heterojunction under the reducing atmosphere,along with the generation of a MoP phase and the splitting of the MoS2 phase.The as-prepared MoS2-MoP/FPC catalyst offers a low overpotential of 144 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and a small Tafel slope of 41 mV dec-1 for the HER in acidic media,as well as remarkable stability.Apart from the active nature of the hybrid,its outstanding activity is attributed to the MoS2-MoP heterojunction,and the good charge/mass-transfer ability of porous carbon.This strategy provides a new method to develop and design low-cost and high-performance catalysts for the HER.

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Organic 3D interconnected graphene aerogel as cathode materials for high-performance aqueous zinc ion battery Ruibai Cang, Ke Ye, Kai Zhu, Jun Yan, Jinling Yin, Kui Cheng, Guiling Wang, Dianxue Cao 2020, 45(6): 52-58.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.026 Abstract ( 9 )   Aqueous rechargeable zinc ion batteries are very attractive in large-scale storage applications,because they have high safety,low cost and good durability.Nonetheless,their advancements are hindered by a dearth of positive host materials (cathode) due to sluggish diffusion of Zn2+ in the solid inorganic frameworks.Here,we report a novel organic electrode material of poly 3,4,9,10-perylentetracarboxylic dianhydride (PPTCDA)/graphene aerogel (GA).The 3D interconnected porous architecture synthesized through a simple solvothermal reaction,where the PPTCDA is homogenously embedded in the GA nanosheets.The self-assembly of PPTCDA/GA coin-type cell will not only significantly improve the durability and extend lifetime of the devices,but also reduce the electronic waste and economic cost.The self-assembled structure does not require the auxiliary electrode and conductive agent to prepare the electrode material,which is a simple method for preparing the coin-type cell and a foundation for the next large-scale production.The PPTCDA/GA delivers a high capacity of ≥ 200 mAh g-1 with the voltage of 0.0～1.5 V.After 300 cycles,the capacity retention rate still close to 100%.The discussion on the mechanism of Zn2+ intercalation/deintercalation in the PPTCDA/GA electrode is explored by Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FT-IR),X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterizations.The morphology and structure of PPTCDA/GA are examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

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Active sites engineering of Pt/CNT oxygen reduction catalysts by atomic layer deposition Jie Gan, Jiankang Zhang, Baiyan Zhang, Wenyao Chen, Dongfang Niu, Yong Qin, Xuezhi Duan, Xinggui Zhou 2020, 45(6): 59-66.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.024 Abstract ( 9 )   Understanding carbon-supported Pt-catalyzed oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) from the perspective of the active sites is of fundamental and practical importance.In this study,three differently sized carbon nanotube-supported Pt nanoparticles (Pt/CNT) are prepared by both atomic layer deposition (ALD) and impregnation methods.The performances of the catalysts toward the ORR in acidic media are comparatively studied to probe the effects of the sizes of the Pt nanoparticles together with their distributions,electronic properties,and local environments.The ALD-Pt/CNT catalysts show much higher ORR activity and selectivity than the impregnation-Pt/CNT catalysts.This outstanding ORR performance is ascribed to the well-controlled Pt particle sizes and distributions,desirable Pt0 4f binding energy,and the Cl-free Pt surfaces based on the electrocatalytic measurements,catalyst characterizations,and model calculations.The insights reported here could guide the rational design and fine-tuning of carbon-supported Pt catalysts for the ORR.

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Emerging CoMn-LDH@MnO2 electrode materials assembled using nanosheets for flexible and foldable energy storage devices Yue Zhao, Jiafeng He, Meizhen Dai, Depeng Zhao, Xiang Wu, Baodan Liu 2020, 45(6): 67-73.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.027 Abstract ( 16 )   CoMn layered double hydroxides (CoMn-LDH) are promising electrode materials for supercapacitors because of their excellent cyclic stability.However,they possess relatively low capacitances.In this work,hybrid CoMn-LDH@MnO2 products grown on Ni foams were obtained through a facile hydrothermal method.The as-synthesized samples employed as electrodes deliver a specific capacitance of 2325.01 F g-1 at 1 A g-1.An assembled asymmetric supercapacitor using these products as positive electrodes shows a maximum energy density of 59.73 W h kg-1 at 1000.09 W kg-1.The prominent electrochemical performance of the as-prepared electrodes could be attributes to hierarchical structures.These findings suggest that hybrid structures might be potential alternatives for future flexible energy storage devices.

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Failure analysis of pouch-type Li-O2 batteries with superior energy density Shangqian Zhao, Li Zhang, Gangning Zhang, Haobo Sun, Juanyu Yang, Shigang Lu 2020, 45(6): 74-82.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.029 Abstract ( 7 )   Li-O2 batteries have attracted significant interest in the past decade owing to their superior high specific energy density in contrast to conventional lithium ion batteries.An 8.7-Ah Li-O2 pouch cell with 768.5 Wh kg-1 was fabricated and characterized in this investigation and the factors that influenced the electrochemical performance of the Li-O2 pouch cell were studied.In contrast to coin/Swagelok-type Li-O2 cells,it was demonstrated that the high-loading air electrode,pulverization of the Li anode,and the large-scale inhomogeneity of the large pouch cell are the major reasons for the failure of Li-O2 batteries with Ah capacities.In addition,safety tests of large Li-O2 pouch cells were conducted for the first time,including nail penetration,crushing,and thermal stability.It was indicated that a self-limiting mechanism is a key safety feature of these batteries,even when shorted.In this study,Li-O2 batteries were investigated in a new size and capacity-scale,which may provide useful insight into the development of practical pouch-type Li-O2 batteries.

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Glass-like electronic and thermal transport in crystalline cubic germanium selenide Mingtao Yan, Huiyuan Geng, Peng Jiang, Xinhe Bao 2020, 45(6): 83-90.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.021 Abstract ( 12 )   Thermoelectric properties of orthorhombic or rhombohedral GeSe have attracted great attention recently,with the rise of its structural analog SnSe.However,the p-type cubic GeSe with higher symmetry and higher valence band degeneracy,which might exhibit higher thermoelectric performance,has never been synthesized.Here we report on the successful synthesis of p-type crystalline cubic GeSe by alloying with Sb2Te3 and the spontaneously formed Ge-vacancies.An unexpected glass-like temperature independent lattice thermal conductivity is observed in crystalline cubic GeSe,which results from strong phonon scattering by vacancy-induced disorders.Combining the multiple scattering theory and chemical bond analysis,we further reveal the existence of Anderson localization induced by Ge-vacancies.The Anderson localization results in a nearly constant Seebeck coefficient with increasing the carrier concentration.These results provide a general insight towards understanding and improving the thermoelectric properties of thermoelectric materials with vacancies and atomic-scale disorders.

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3D-printing of integrated spheres as a superior support of phosphotungstic acid for deep oxidative desulfurization of fuel Jie Zhu, Peiwen Wu, Linlin Chen, Jing He, Yingcheng Wu, Chao Wang, Yanhong Chao, Linjie Lu, Minqiang He, Wenshuai Zhu, Huaming Li 2020, 45(6): 91-97.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.001 Abstract ( 6 )   Construction of catalysts with integral structure for oxidative reaction process is an essential promotion to catalysts in industrial application.In this work,a 3D printing method was employed to prepare 3D printed spheres (3D-PSs),followed by carbonization to form 3D carbon spheres (3D-CSs).Then,a 3D-CSs supported phosphotungstic acid (HPW/3D-CSs) was prepared for deep oxidative desulfurization.Compared with traditional powder catalysts,the as-prepared catalyst is easy to be operated and separated from oil products.The supported catalyst possesses excellent catalytic performance and the removal of DBT,4-MDBT and 4,6-DMDBT in fuel oil,reaching ~100% of sulfur removal.The effects of various experimental parameters on desulfurization efficiency were considered to optimize reaction conditions.Moreover,the catalyst shows excellent thermal and chemical stability,with no obvious decrease in desulfurization activity after 5 cycles.GC-MS analysis indicates DBT sulfone was the solely oxidized product of DBT.

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Toward better electrode/electrolyte interfaces in the ionic-liquid-based rechargeable aluminum batteries Haoyi Yang, Feng Wu, Ying Bai, Chuan Wu 2020, 45(6): 98-102.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.003 Abstract ( 11 )   The past decade has witnessed the germination of rechargeable aluminum batteries (RABs) with the colossal potential to enact as a device for the large scale energy storage and conversion.The Majority of investigations are dedicated to the exploration of suitable cathode materials,while less is known about the electrode/electrolyte interfaces that determine the electrochemistry of batteries.In this perspective,we will highlight the significance of electrode/electrolyte interface for RABs,in overall kinetics and capacity retention.Emphasis will be laid on the complicated yet basic understandings of the phenomena at the interfaces,including the dendrite growth,surface Al2O3 and solid-electrolyte-interphase (SEI).And we will summarize the reported practice in effort to build better electrode/electrolyte interfaces in RAB.In the end,outlook regarding to the challenges,opportunities and directions is presented.

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Enhanced efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells by 2D perovskite vapor-assisted interface optimization Minghui Chen, Pengwei Li, Chao Liang, Hao Gu, Weishuang Tong, Shiping Cheng, Weili Li, Ganqing Zhao, Guosheng Shao 2020, 45(6): 103-109.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.006 Abstract ( 16 )   Organic-inorganic perovskites solar cells (PSCs) have attracted great attention due to their rapid progress in power conversion efficiency (PCE).However,there is still an enormous challenge to achieve both high efficiency and stability devices as the decomposition of perovskite materials under humid and light conditions.Herein,we demonstrate that high efficiency and stability of PSCs can be obtained by the reaction of three-dimensional (3D) perovskite with 1,4-butanediamine iodide (BEAI2) vapor.The incorporation of BEAI2 intensively promotes the crystallization of perovskite film with large grain size (~500 nm).Further characterization reveals that the post-treatment perovskite film delivered low interface trap density with long carrier lifetime (> 200 ns),long carrier diffusion length (> 600 nm) and large carrier mobility (> 1.5 cm2 V-1 S-1).Solar cells employing such post-treatment films demonstrated 19.58% PCE without hysteresis.Moreover,the post-treatment devices can retain over 90% original efficiencies stored under ambient atmospheric conditions and exhibit better stability under 85℃ and continuous illumination as a two-dimensional (2D) perovskite thin layer is formed on the surface/or at the grain boundaries of 3D perovskite.This study offers an effective way to obtain PSCs with high efficiency and stability.

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Rearrangement on surface structures by boride to enhanced cycle stability for LiNi0.80Co0.15Al0.05O2 cathode in lithium ion batteries Shubiao Xia, Wenjin Huang, Xiang Shen, Jiaming Liu, Feixiang Cheng, Jian-Jun Liu, Xiaofei Yang, Hong Guo 2020, 45(6): 110-118.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.09.023 Abstract ( 7 )   The side reaction between the active material and liquid-electrolyte cause structural damage and particle pulverization is one of the important factors leading to the capacity decay of LiNi0.80Co0.15Al0.05O2 (NCA) materials in Li ion batteries (LIBs).Surface modification is an effective strategy for NCA cathodes,which could alleviate the degradation associated with surface processes.Herein,a surface structure rearrangement of NCA cathode secondary particles was reported by in-situ forming a solid electrolyte LiBO2.The LiBO2 is beneficial for alleviating the stress during charge/discharge process,thereby slowing down the rate of cracks formation in the secondary particles,which facilitates the Li+ de-intercalation as well as prevents penetration of the liquid-electrolyte into the interior of the particles.As a result,the surface structure rearrangement NCA (RS-NCA) delivers a high discharge capacity of 202.5 mAh g-1 at 0.1 C,and exhibits excellent cycle stability with discharge capacity retaining 148 mAh g-1 after 200 cycles at 2 C.This surface structure rearrangement approach provides a new viewpoint in designing high-performance high-voltage LIBs.

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Hierarchically porous N-doped carbon derived from biomass as oxygen reduction electrocatalyst for high-performance Al-air battery Yanqiu Wang, Jiayu Hao, Jiawen Yu, Hongjian Yu, Keke Wang, Xuetao Yang, Jie Li, Wenzhang Li 2020, 45(6): 119-125.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.005 Abstract ( 13 )   Developing large-scale and highly efficient oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts acts a vital role in realizing wide application of metal-air batteries.Here,we propose a gas-foaming strategy to fabricate sustainable and 3D hierarchically porous N-doped carbon with high specific surface area and abundant defects sites derived from biomass.The obtained catalyst exhibits prominent ORR property with higher half-wave potential (0.861 V) and slightly lower kinetic current density (32.44 mA cm-2),compared to Pt/C (0.856 V and 43.61 mA cm-1).Furthermore,employing it as catalyst of air cathode,the Al-air battery delivers remarkable discharge performance with excellent power density of 401 mW cm-2,distinguished energy density of 2453.4 Wh kg-1 and extremely high open-circuit voltage of 1.85 V among the reported metal-air batteries in the literatures.This gas-foaming strategy for full utilization of biomass affords a chance to explore scalable advanced catalysts in metal-air battery.

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New insight of stabilizing electrode/electrolyte interphase: Regulating the specific adsorption of the inner Helmholtz plane Wenjun Li, Hong Li 2020, 45(6): 126-127.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.002 Abstract ( 23 )

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Boudouard reaction driven by thermal plasma for efficient CO2 conversion and energy storage Zhikai Li, Tao Yang, Shaojun Yuan, Yongxiang Yin, Edwin J. Devid, Qiang Huang, Daniel Auerbach, Aart W. Kleyn 2020, 45(6): 128-134.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.007 Abstract ( 47 )   Conversion of CO2 into CO using plasma processing powered by renewable energy is a promising method to convert intermittent sustainable electricity into storable chemical energy.Despite extensive research efforts worldwide,there is currently no process that achieves economically viable values for both CO2 conversion fraction and energy recovery efficiency simultaneously.Here we demonstrate that a process that utilizes the Boudouard reaction,CO2 + +C → 2CO,driven by a thermal plasma allows both 95% CO2 conversion to CO and energy recovery efficiency of 70%,values far higher than seen so far.By comparing the conversion process with and without CO2 excitation by a plasma and by using optical emission spectroscopy we show that the improved performance is due to a novel mode of operation where CO2 is pyrolyzed into an active mixture of CO,O and O2 by an arc discharge which is then introduced into a fixed bed to interact with carbon material.In this way,the free oxygen in the mixture combusts with carbon to form CO,and residual plasma excited CO2 is reduced by carbon.In the overall process,the endothermic Boudouard reaction is partially replaced by an exothermic reaction,and the excess electric energy to produce CO2 plasma is reused in the carbon bed.

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Efficient polysulfide blocker from conductive niobium nitride@graphene for Li-S batteries Huifa Shi, Zhenhua Sun, Wei Lv, Shujie Xiao, Huicong Yang, Ying Shi, Ke Chen, Shaogang Wang, Bingsen Zhang, Quan-Hong Yang, Feng Li 2020, 45(6): 135-141.  DOI: 10.1016/j.jechem.2019.10.018 Abstract ( 3 )   Lithium sulfur batteries are one of the most promising alternative electrochemical systems,but their practical applications are largely hindered by the serious shuttling problems and sluggish redox kinetics.Here,the conductive and polar niobium nitride (NbN) is in-situ introduced onto graphene with ultrasmall size and high dispersion,and their composite is used to construct an efficient lithium polysulfide blocking layer.The graphene helps to construct highly conductive pathways,and niobium nitride serves as the sulfiphilic sites to chemically adsorb the migrating lithium polysulfides and catalyze their redox conversion.Hence,the cells with the NbN/G interlayers exhibit a long cycle life with a lower capacity decay of 0.096%/cycle at 1 C for 300 cycles and high rate capability of 937 mAh g-1 at 2 C.Further coupling with a sulfur/carbon nanofiber electrode,the cell with an ultra-high sulfur loading of 10.8 mg cm-2 delivers an areal capacity of 12.5 mAh cm-2 at 0.1 C.