High-Energy Aqueous S-MnO2 Batteries with Redox Charge Carriers.

Abstract

The energy densities of conventional aqueous batteries are often unsatisfactory due to the limited capacities of electrode materials. Therefore, the design of creative aqueous batteries has to be considered. Herein, aqueous S-MnO2 batteries are constructed by matching S/Cu2S redox couples and MnO2 deposition/dissolution. In such batteries, S/Cu2S redox couples undergo the solid-solid conversion reaction with four-electron transfer, ensuring a high specific capacity of 2220 mAh g-1 in S anodes. Furthermore, the conversion reaction of S/Cu2S redox couples can take place stably in acidic electrolyte that is essential for the MnO2 deposition/dissolution. As a result, the S/Cu2S redox couples can match MnO2 deposition/dissolution well, which endow the batteries with a membrane-free configuration. As a proof of concept, Ah-level prismatic and single-flow batteries were assembled and could operate stably for over 1000 h, demonstrating their great potential for large-scale energy storage. This work broadens the horizons of aqueous batteries beyond metal-manganese chemistry.