Construction of the Fast Potassiation Path in Sb_xBi_1-x@NC Anode with Ultrahigh Cycling Stability for Potassium-Ion Batteries

Due to the scarce of lithium resources, potassium-ion batteries (PIBs) have attracted extensive attention due to their similar electrochemical properties to lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and more abundant potassium resources. Even though there is considerable progress in SbBi alloy anode for LIBs and PIBs, most studies are focused on the morphology/structure tuning, while the inherent physical features of alloy composition's effect on the electrochemical performance are rarely investigated. Herein, combined the nanonization, carbon compounding, and alloying with composition regulation, the anode of nitrogen-doped carbon-coated SbxBi1-x (SbxBi1-x@NC) with a series of tuned chemical compositions is designed as an ideal model. The density functional theory (DFT) calculation and experimental investigation results show that the K+ diffusion barrier is lower and the path is easier to carry out when element Bi dominates the potassiation reaction, which is also the reason for better circulation. The optimized Sb0.25Bi0.75@NC shows an excellent cycling performance with a reversible specific capacity of 301.9 mA h g(-1) after 500 cycles at 0.1 A g(-1). Meanwhile, the charge-discharge mechanism is intuitively invetigated and analyzed by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in detail. Such an alloy-type anode synthesis approach and in situ observation method provide an adjustable strategy for the designing and investigating of PIB anodes.