A V₂O₃@N–C cathode material for aqueous zinc-ion batteries with boosted zinc-ion storage performance

Abstract: The discontinuity of new types of clean energy, such as wind power and solar cells, has promoted the development of large-scale energy storage systems (EES). Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have received extensive attention due to their inherent safety and low cost. At this stage, the performance of ZIBs is still limited by cathode materials. In this work, we have constructed a ZIBs cathode material-V₂O₃@N–C, through surface coating and N atom doping. The N-doped carbon coating endows V₂O₃@N–C with excellent structural stability and enhances its electrical conductivity. As a result, V₂O₃@N–C cathode delivers exceptional reversible of Zn²⁺ intercalation/deintercalation. The fabricated Zn/V₂O₃@N–C batteries exhibit high capacity of 274.6 mAh·g⁻¹ at 5 A·g⁻¹ and excellent capacity retention of 94% after 2000 cycles. The reversible intercalation/deintercalation of Zn²⁺ in the V₂O₃@N–C cathode is proved by ex-situ testing methods. It is believed that this work should inject new vitality into the development of ZIBs cathode. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]