Architecturing aligned orthorhombic Nb2O5 nanowires toward sodium-ion hybrid capacitor and Lithium–Sulfur battery applications

Abstract

In recent years, orthorhombic Nb2O5 (T-Nb2O5) has been considered as a promising anode material for sodium-ion hybrid capacitors (SICs) due to its fast ion storage properties. Moreover, the T-Nb2O5 has a strong adsorption effect with sulfur species, which shows merits for efficient management of polysulfides in lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries. Herein, we in target prepared T-Nb2O5 nanowires (T-Nb2O5 NWs) and systematically analyzed the electrochemical performances with regards to SICs and Li–S batteries. The resulting T-Nb2O5 NWs//activated carbon SICs delivered a high energy density (106.2 Wh kg−1) and power density (4976 W kg−1). Thus-derived flexible SICs manifested excellent performances upon deformation, which was applicable for fast-charging wearable electronic sensors. Meanwhile, Li–S batteries incorporating T-Nb2O5/graphene/sulfur cathode offered a discharge capacity of 1300 and 917.1 mAh g−1 at 0.2 and 1C, respectively.