Rechargeable metal-ion batteries are considered promising electric storage systems to meet the emerging demand from electric vehicles, electronics, and electric grids. Thus far, secondary Li-ion batteries (LIBs) have seen great advances in terms of both their energy and their power density. However, safety issues remain a challenge. Therefore, rechargeable Al-ion batteries (AIBs) with a highly reliable safety advantage and active electrochemical performances have gathered intensive attention. However, the common issue for these two metal-ion batteries is the lack of cathode materials. Many advanced electrode materials reported provide greatly enhanced electrochemical properties. However, their inherent disadvantages—such as complicated fabrication procedures, restricted manufacturing parameters, and the requirement of expensive instruments—limits their potential for further applications. In this work, we demonstrate the high electrochemical activity of the lanthanide element, Sm, towards storing charges when used in both LIBs and AIBs. Lanthanide elements are often overlooked; however, they generally have attractive electrochemical properties owing to their unpaired electrons. We employed starch as both a low-cost carbon source and as a three-dimensional support for Sm metal nanoparticles. The composite product is fabricated using a one-pot wet-chemical method, followed by a simultaneous carbonization process. As a result, highly improved electrochemical properties are obtained when it is used as a cathode material for both LIBs and AIBs when compared to bare starch-derived C. Our results may introduce a new avenue toward the design of high-performance electrode materials for LIBs and AIBs.

中文翻译：

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钐对淀粉衍生多孔碳的电化学活性：可充电锂离子和铝离子电池


可充电金属离子电池被认为是有前途的电力存储系统，可以满足电动汽车、电子产品和电网的新兴需求。到目前为止，二次锂离子电池（LIB）在能量和功率密度方面都取得了巨大进步。然而，安全问题仍然是一个挑战。因此，具有高度可靠的安全优势和活跃的电化学性能的可充电铝离子电池（AIB）引起了人们的广泛关注。然而，这两种金属离子电池的共同问题是缺乏正极材料。据报道，许多先进的电极材料大大增强了电化学性能。然而，它们固有的缺点——例如复杂的制造过程、受限的制造参数以及需要昂贵的仪器——限制了它们进一步应用的潜力。在这项工作中，我们展示了镧系元素 Sm 在用于 LIB 和 AIB 时存储电荷的高电化学活性。镧系元素常常被忽视；然而，由于它们的不成对电子，它们通常具有有吸引力的电化学特性。我们使用淀粉作为低成本碳源和钐金属纳米颗粒的三维支撑体。该复合材料产品采用一锅湿化学法制造，然后进行同步碳化过程。因此，与裸淀粉衍生的 C 相比，当它用作 LIB 和 AIB 的阴极材料时，电化学性能得到了显着改善。我们的结果可能为 LIB 高性能电极材料的设计开辟一条新途径和 AIB。