Reticular V2O5·0.6H2O Xerogel as Cathode for Rechargeable Potassium Ion Batteries

Potassium ion batteries (KIBs), because of their low price, may exhibit advantages over lithium ion batteries as potential candidates for large-scale energy storage systems. However, owing to the large ionic radii of K-ions, it is challenging to find a suitable intercalation host for KIBs and thus the rechargeable KIB electrode materials are still largely unexplored. In this work, a reticular V 2 O 5 ·0.6H 2 O xerogel was synthesized via a hydrothermal process as a cathode material for rechargeable KIBs. Compared with the orthorhombic crystalline V 2 O 5, the hydrated vanadium pentoxide (V 2 O 5 ·0.6H 2 O) exhibits the ability of accommodating larger alkali metal ions of K + because of the enlarged layer space by hosting structural H 2 O molecules in the interlayer. By intercalation of H 2 O into the V 2 O 5 layers, its potassium electrochemical activity is significantly improved. It exhibits an initial discharge capacity of ∼224.4 mA h g –1 and a discharge capacity of ∼103.5 mA h g –1 even after 500 discharge/charge cycles at a current density of 50 mA g –1, which is much higher than that of the V 2 O 5 electrode without structural water. Meanwhile, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy combined with energy dispersive spectroscopy techniques are carried out to investigate the potassiation/depotassiation process of the V 2 O 5 ·0.6H 2 O electrodes, which confirmed the potassium intercalation storage mechanisms of this hydrated material. The results demonstrate that the interlayer-spacing-enlarged V 2 O 5 ·0.6H 2 O is a promising cathode candidate for KIBs.