Cheng Zheng

ZMO, a zinc-rich, structurally engineered cathode material for regulated zinc storage, delivers high capacity and stable cycling at high voltages—enabling high-energy-density, high-safety zinc-based batteries.

Chemical stitching tailors the closed-pore mouth of hard carbon, forming a high-modulus, inorganic-rich intrapore solid electrolyte interphase that mechanically confines Na-cluster growth and enables fast sodium storage.

SnSe₂ has attracted great attention due to its unique 2D-layered structure, which makes it capable of sodium ion storage and higher theoretical capacities compared to traditional anode materials like hard carbon for sodium ion batteries (SIBs). However, SnSe₂-based materials will cause structural damage due to volume expansion during ion storage, leading to poor cycle stability and rate capacity. In this work, Co-doped SnSe₂ (Co-SnSe₂) with preferred crystal orientation was fabricated by a one-step solvothermal method. It has been found that after doping Co, the lower (001) crystal plane located at 14.4° replaced the higher (101) plane at 30.7° as the dominant crystal plane in Co-SnSe₂, which significantly promoted ion diffusion and enhanced the pseudocapacitance behavior. Therefore, this Co-SnSe₂ anode achieves a high capacity of 504 mAh g^-1 at 1 A g^-1, and a high-rate cycle stability, delivering a reversible capacity of 302 mAh g^-1 at 5 A g^-1 after 1800 cycles with a retained capacity rate of 94%. Moreover, the Na₃V₂(PO₄)₃||Co-SnSe₂ full cell exhibits a stable cycle performance of over 300 cycles at 1 A g^-1, demonstrating great promise for practical applications. This work provides an effective reference for the exploration of high-performance sodium storage anode materials.

The development of solid‐state electrolytes (SSEs) with outstanding comprehensive performance is currently a critical challenge for achieving high energy density and safer solid‐state batteries (SSBs). In this study, a strategy of nano‐confined in situ solidification is proposed to create a novel category of molten guest‐mediated metal–organic frameworks, named MGM–MOFs. By embedding the newly developed molten crystalline organic electrolyte (ML₂₀) into the nanocages of anionic MOF–OH, MGM–MOF–OH, characterized by multi‐modal supramolecular interaction sites and continuous negative electrostatic environments within nano‐channels, is achieved. These nanochannels promote ion transport through the successive hopping of Li⁺ between neighbored negative electrostatic environments and suppress anion movement through the chemical constraint of the hydroxyl‐functionalized pore wall. This results in remarkable Li⁺ conductivity of 7.1 × 10⁻⁴ S cm⁻¹ and high Li⁺ transference number of 0.81. Leveraging these advantages, the SSBs assembled with MGM–MOF–OH exhibit impressive cycle stability and a high specific energy density of 410.5 Wh kg_{anode + cathode + electrolyte}⁻¹ under constrained conditions and various working temperatures. Unlike flammable traditional MOFs, MGM–MOF–OH demonstrates high robustness under various harsh conditions, including ignition, high voltage, and extended to humidity.

The development of highly efficient catalysts to address the shuttle effect and sluggish redox kinetics of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) in lithium‐sulfur batteries (LSBs) remains a formidable challenge. In this study, a series of multi‐site catalytic metal‐organic frameworks (MSC‐MOFs) were elaborated through multimodal molecular engineering to regulate both the reactant diffusion and catalysis processes. MSC‐MOFs were crafted with nanocages featuring collaborative specific adsorption/catalytic interfaces formed by exposed mixed‐valence metal sites and surrounding adsorption sites. This design facilitates internal preconcentration, a coadsorption mechanism, and continuous efficient catalytic conversion toward polysulfides concurrently. Leveraging these attributes, LSBs with an MSC‐MOF‐Ti catalytic interlayer demonstrated a 62 % improvement in discharge capacity and cycling stability. This resulted in achieving a high areal capacity (11.57 mAh cm⁻²) at a high sulfur loading (9.32 mg cm⁻²) under lean electrolyte conditions, along with a pouch cell exhibiting an ultra‐high gravimetric energy density of 350.8 Wh kg⁻¹. Lastly, this work introduces a universal strategy for the development of a new class of efficient catalytic MOFs, promoting SRR and suppressing the shuttle effect at the molecular level. The findings shed light on the design of advanced porous catalytic materials for application in high‐energy LSBs.

The development of highly efficient catalysts to address the shuttle effect and sluggish redox kinetics of lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) in lithium‐sulfur batteries (LSBs) remains a formidable challenge. In this study, a series of multi‐site catalytic metal‐organic frameworks (MSC‐MOFs) were elaborated through multimodal molecular engineering to regulate both the reactant diffusion and catalysis processes. MSC‐MOFs were crafted with nanocages featuring collaborative specific adsorption/catalytic interfaces formed by exposed mixed‐valence metal sites and surrounding adsorption sites. This design facilitates internal preconcentration, a coadsorption mechanism, and continuous efficient catalytic conversion toward polysulfides concurrently. Leveraging these attributes, LSBs with an MSC‐MOF‐Ti catalytic interlayer demonstrated a 62 % improvement in discharge capacity and cycling stability. This resulted in achieving a high areal capacity (11.57 mAh cm⁻²) at a high sulfur loading (9.32 mg cm⁻²) under lean electrolyte conditions, along with a pouch cell exhibiting an ultra‐high gravimetric energy density of 350.8 Wh kg⁻¹. Lastly, this work introduces a universal strategy for the development of a new class of efficient catalytic MOFs, promoting SRR and suppressing the shuttle effect at the molecular level. The findings shed light on the design of advanced porous catalytic materials for application in high‐energy LSBs.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) as a replaceable energy storage technology have attracted extensive attention in recent years. The design and preparation of advanced anode materials with high capacity and excellent cycling performance for SIBs still face enormous challenges. Herein, a solution method is developed for in situ synthesis of anti-aggregation tellurium nanorods/reduced graphene oxide (Te NR/rGO) composite. The material working as the sodium-ion battery (SIB) anode achieves a high reversible capacity of 338 mAh g⁻¹ at 5 A g⁻¹ and exhibits up to 93.4% capacity retention after 500 cycles. This work demonstrates an effective preparation method of nano-Te-based composites for SIBs.