Xingzhong Guo

The lithium argyrodite‐type electrolyte exhibits excellent ion transport properties for all‐solid‐state batteries (ASSBs). However, their practical implementation is limited by poor cycle stability, arising from the coupled chemo‐mechanical degradation. To address these issues, we developed an effective interfacial engineering strategy by constructing the lithium difluoro(bisoxalato)phosphate (LiODFP)‐derived conformal LiF/fluorophosphate‐rich layer on the Li _5.5 PS _4.5 Cl _1.5 (LPSC1.5) surface. The multifunctional interface layer acts as an electron‐blocking barrier to suppress parasitic interfacial oxidation, and as a bridging agent to fill interparticle voids in composite cathodes, thereby reinforcing chemo‐mechanical integrity during cycling. Consequently, the LiIn|LPSC@1%LP|NCM83‐based cells retain 90% of their initial capacity after 2000 cycles at 1 C and 86% after 800 cycles at 2 C, enabling the ultra‐stable operation at high‐rate capabilities. It provides further insights into the chemical‐mechanical coupling failure evolution at the electrolyte/cathode interface, and extends the electrolyte‐centered interfacial functionalization engineering strategy for high‐energy solid‐state energy storage.

The development of site-selective C–H arylation of simple arenes is an urgent yet very challenging task. In particular, the meta-C–H activation of electron-deficient arenes is one of the most challenging substrates for selective functionalization and lacks efficient synthetic approaches. Herein, we address this long-standing challenge for the first time by using easily available diaryl disulfide as a new masked arylating reagent. Diaryl disulfide displays a broader scope of substrates and enables the promotion of the arylation of both electron-rich and electron-deficient arenes. The site selectivity of multisubstituted arenes can also be predictable from the well-understood electrophilic substitution-type (SEAr) mechanism.

Silicon carbide/graphite composite ceramics containing 30 wt% (SiC/C30) and 35 wt% (SiC/C35) graphite were fabricated by hot pressing sintering, and the sintering behavior, microstructure, mechanical properties, and functional properties of the composite ceramics were investigated in detail. The combination of spray‐drying granulation and hot pressing sintering synergistically overcomes the densification barrier caused by high graphite content. The external driving force supplied by hot pressing sintering not only promotes densification, but also facilitates the formation of a continuous conductive network even when the carbon content is high. The appropriate sintering conditions with a temperature of 2125°C and a pressure of 40 MPa allow the preparation of SiC/C30 composite ceramics with superior mechanical properties and excellent functional performance with a bulk density of 2.763 g/cm ³ , a bending strength of 318 ± 3.8 MPa, a Vickers hardness of 5.73 ± 0.09 GPa, a fracture toughness (K _IC ) of 2.36 ± 0.023 MPa·m ^1/2 , a room‐temperature thermal conductivity of 69.92 ± 0.39 W/(m·K), an electrical conductivity of 8.932 ± 0.102 S/m, and coefficient of friction (COF) of 0.172 ± 0.00010.

Practical sodium metal batteries (SMBs) remain hindered by Na dendritic growth and limited cathode areal loading (−2 ). Typical localized high concentration electrolytes (LHCEs) can offer wide electrochemical windows and improved physical properties, while critical challenges persist: (a) sluggish Na ⁺ interfacial exchange kinetics arising from a constrained Na ⁺ hopping mechanism, and (b) protracted solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formation. Herein, a quasi‐localized high concentration electrolyte (q‐LHCE1) is designed by introducing a pseudo‐diluent, 2,2,2‐trifluoroethyl trifluoromethanesulfonate (TFE‐OTf), into sodium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide (NaFSI)/diglyme (G2) system. TFE‐OTf not only strengthens cation‐anion interactions to promote a NaF‐dominated poly‐inorganic SEI, but also participates in the inner solvation sheath to enhance connectivity among solvation clusters. The resultant q‐LHCE1 enables superior cycling stability for 4.0 V Na|| NaNi _0.33 Fe _0.33 Mn _0.33 O ₂ (NFM) cells with a high cathode loading of 14 mg cm ⁻² , and retains 80% of its initial capacity over 430 cycles at 0.3 C. The constructed NFM||Na cell with limited Na reservoir (N/P = 10.6) also achieves 96.8% capacity retention after 40 cycles at 0.1 C. This work sheds light on the Na ⁺ interfacial exchange kinetics and poly‐inorganic SEI formation, and offers a promising strategy for practical SMBs applications.

Na4Fe3(PO4)2P2O7 (NFPP) is a promising polyanionic cathode for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) owing to a theoretical capacity of ~129 mAh g−1 and low volume change (~4%) during cycling, while its practical application is hindered by low electronic conductivity and the formation of electrochemically inert maricite NaFePO4 during synthesis. Herein, we develop a Na-excess and Cu-doping dual-modification strategy to address both limitations. The optimal Na4.12Fe2.92Cu0.08(PO4)2P2O7 shows a reversible capacity of 116.8 mAh g−1 at 0.1 C with an initial Coulombic efficiency of 95.9%, retains 85.3 mAh g−1 at 20 C, and recovers 99.5% of its capacity at 1 C. The dual-modified cathode maintains about 97% of its capacity after 1000 cycles at 10 C, with a higher absolute capacity than the singly modified counterparts. The improved performance results from two coupled effects, including Cu doping suppressing the formation of maricite NaFePO4 impurity under Na-excess conditions and Na-excess activating the Na4 site and offsetting the lattice distortion introduced by Cu substitution. The charge-transfer resistance decreases from 65.3 to 37.6 Ω with a 42.4% reduction, and the Na+ (de)intercalation kinetics become more symmetric with Da/Dc changing from 2.37 to 1.67. This work provides an effective strategy for designing high-performance polyanionic cathodes for SIBs.

High-entropy oxides have demonstrated considerable potential for application in the field of nonprecious metal electrocatalysis owing to their distinctive structural and compositional advantages. Herein, macroporous monoliths of La(Fe_0.25Ni_0.25Co_0.25Mn_0.25Cr_0.25)O₃ high-entropy perovskite oxide are prepared via a sol-gel process combined with phase separation and subsequent calcination. By precisely tuning the amounts of propylene oxide (PO) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), along with a water/glycerol ratio, xerogels featuring interconnected macropores and cocontinuous frameworks are acquired. After calcination, high-entropy perovskite oxides of high purity and superior structural stability are obtained. As synthesized macroporous La(Fe_0.25Ni_0.25Co_0.25Mn_0.25Cr_0.25)O₃ calcined at 1000 °C demonstrates exceptional oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalytic activities under alkaline conditions, with an overpotential of 348 mV at 100 mA cm^-2 and a Tafel slope of 42.2 mV dec^-1, surpassing commercial IrO₂ under identical testing environment. This work offers interesting insights into the rational design of stable and effective high-entropy perovskite OER catalytic materials.