Facile synthesis of three-dimensional Ni3Sn2S2 as a novel battery-type electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors

Designing nano-heterostructured nickel doped tin sulfide/tin oxide as binder free electrode material for supercapattery

New generation of electrochemical energy storage devices (EESD) such as supercapattery is being intensively studied as it merges the ideal energy density of batteries and optimal power density of supercapacitors in a single device. A multitude of parameters such as the method of electrodes preparation can affect the performance of supercapattery. In this research, nickel doped tin sulfide /tin oxide (SnS@Ni/SnO2) heterostructures were grown directly on the Ni foam and subjected to different calcination temperatures to study their effect on formation, properties, and electrochemical performance through X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and electrochemical tests. The optimized SnS@Ni/SnO2 electrode achieved a maximum specific capacity of 319 C g- 1 while activated carbon based capacitive electrode exhibited maximum specific capacitance of 381.19 Fg- 1. Besides, capacitive electrodes for the supercapattery were optimized by incorporating different conductive materials such as acetylene black (AB), carbon nanotubes (CNT) and graphene (GR). Assembling these optimized electrodes with the aid of charge balancing equation, the assembled supercapattery was able to achieve outstanding maximum energy density and power density of 36.04 Wh kg- 1 and 12.48 kW kg- 1 with capacity retention of 91% over 4,000 charge/discharge cycles.

Hollow Bowl NiS2 @polyaniline Conductive Linker/Graphene Conductive Network: A Triple Composite for High-Performance Supercapacitor Applications

The achievement of the outstanding theoretical capacitance of nickel sulfide (NiS2 ) is challenging due to its low conductivity, slow electrochemical kinetics, and poor structural stability. In this study, we utilize polyaniline (PANI) as a linker to anchor the NiS2 with a hollow bowl-like structure, uniformly dispersed at the surface of graphene oxide (GO)(NiS2 @15PG). The presence of PANI provides growth sites, resulting in a uniform and dense arrangement of NiS2 . This morphological modulation of NiS2 increases the contact area between the active material to electrolyte. Additionally, PANI effectively connects NiS2 with the conductive network of GO, which advances the electrical conductivity and ion diffusion properties. As a result, the Rct (charge transfer resistance) and Zw (Warburg impedance) of NiS2 @15PG decrease by 82.61 % and 66.76 % respectively. This unique structure confers NiS2 @15PG with high specific capacitance (536.13 C g-1 at 1 A g-1 ) and excellent multiplicative property of 60.93 % at 20 A g-1 . The assembled NiS2 @15PG//YP-50 supercapacitors (HSC) demonstrates an energy density (13.09 Wh kg-1 ) at a high-power density (16 kW kg-1 ). The capacity retention after 10,000 cycles at 5 A g-1 is 86.59 %, indicating its significant potential for practical applications.

Firmly interlocked Janus-type metallic Ni3Sn2S2-carbon nanotube heterostructure suppresses polysulfide dissolution and Sn aggregation

Ternary transition-metal tin chalcogenides, with their diverse compositions, abundant constituents, high theoretical capacities, acceptable working potentials, excellent conductivities, and synergistic active/inactive multi-components, hold promise as anode materials for metal-ion batteries. However, abnormal aggregation of Sn nanocrystals and the shuttling of intermediate polysulfides during electrochemical tests detrimentally affect the reversibility of redox reactions and lead to rapid capacity fading within a limited number of cycles. In this study, we present the development of a robust Janus-type metallic Ni₃Sn₂S₂-carbon nanotube (NSSC) heterostructured anode for Li-ion batteries (LIBs). The synergistic effects of Ni₃Sn₂S₂ nanoparticles and a carbon network successfully generate abundant heterointerfaces with steady chemical bridges, thereby enhancing ion and electron transport, preventing the aggregation of Ni and Sn nanoparticles, mitigating the oxidation and shuttling of polysulfides, facilitating the reforming of Ni₃Sn₂S₂ nanocrystals during delithiation, creating a uniform solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer, protecting the mechanical integrity of electrode materials, and ultimately enabling highly reversible lithium storage. Consequently, the NSSC hybrid exhibits an excellent initial Coulombic efficiency (ICE > 83 %) and superb cyclic performance (1218 mAh/g after 500 cycles at 0.2 A/g and 752 mAh/g after 1050 cycles at 1 A/g). This research provides practical solutions for the intrinsic challenges associated with multi-component alloying and conversion-type electrode materials in next-generation metal-ion batteries.