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Aqueous batteries with high safety and cost efficiency usually employ metallic cations as charge carriers. Recently, ammonium (NH4+) ion batteries using the nonmetal NH4+ as a charge carrier exhibit distinct electrochemical features from conventional aqueous batteries. Herein, the electrochemical performances of a bimetallic hydroxide material are systematically studied with different charge carriers in the electrolytes, including NH4+, as well as the conventional monovalent metallic cations K+ and Na+, respectively. Electrochemical results indicate that the charge storage process using NH4+ as the working ions exhibits a higher discharge plateau, smaller electrochemical polarization, and larger discharge capacity than that using conventional metallic charge carriers. Experimental characterizations and theoretical calculations suggest that the strong interaction between NH4+ and the electrode material, as well as the low NH4+‐ion diffusion barrier lead to these superior electrochemical features. The assembled NH4+‐ion battery exhibits a good energy density of 123 Wh kg(cathode+anode)−1 at the power density of 480 W kg(cathode+anode)−1. These fundamental findings are important for developing good safety, low‐cost, and high‐energy aqueous batteries with sustainable NH4+ charge carriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The porcine epidemic diarrhoea virus (PEDV) devastates the health of piglets but may not infect piglets whose CMP-N-glycolylneuraminic acid hydroxylase (CMAH) gene is mutated (knockouts, KO) by using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing techniques. This hypothesis was tested by using KO piglets that were challenged with PEDV. Two single-guide RNAs targeting the CMAH gene and Cas9 mRNA were microinjected into the cytoplasm of newly fertilized eggs. Four live founders generated and proven to be biallelic KO, lacking detectable N-glycolylneuraminic acid (NGNA). The founders were bred, and homozygous offspring were obtained. Two-day-old (in exps. I, n = 6, and III, n = 15) and 3-day-old (in exp. II, n = 9) KO and wild-type (WT, same ages in respective exps.) piglets were inoculated with TCID50 1x103 PEDV and then fed 20 mL of infant formula (in exps. I and II) or sow's colostrum (in exp. III) every 4 hours. In exp. III, the colostrum was offered 6 times and was then replaced with Ringer/5% glucose solution. At 72 hours post-PEDV inoculation (hpi), the animals either deceased or euthanized were necropsied and intestines were sampled. In all 3 experiments, the piglets showed apparent outward clinical manifestations suggesting that infection occurred despite the CMAH KO. In exp. I, all 6 WT piglets and only 1 of 6 KO piglets died at 72 hpi. Histopathology and immunofluorescence staining showed that the villus epithelial cells of WT piglets were severely exfoliated, but only moderate exfoliation and enterocyte vacuolization was observed in KO piglets. In exp. II, delayed clinical symptoms appeared, yet the immunofluorescence staining/histopathologic inspection (I/H) scores of the two groups differed little. In exp. III, the animals exhibited clinical and pathological signs after inoculation similar to those in exp. II. These results suggest that porcine CMAH KO with nullified NGNA expression are not immune to PEDV but that this KO may lessen the severity of the infection and delay its occurrence.

In recent years, 2D intercalated pseudocapacitance MoO3 and Nb2O5 have been widely investigated, while 3D Mo-Nb–O materials have rarely been discussed. Here, we synthesized Mo3Nb2O14-B by a simple ball-milling method and further prepared Mo3Nb2O14-L with advanced energy storage properties by a solvothermal method, where the abundant nanopore channels and in situ carbon encapsulation led to fast Li-ion diffusion and excellent structural stability. It performs well in half-cell performance tests, including high reversible capacity (461 mAh g−1 at 0.1C), initial coulomb efficiency of 88.4%, excellent cycling performance (4.4% capacity loss in 600 cycles at 10 C), and significant intercalation mimetic capacitive contribution (89.2% at 1.0 mV s). All these advantages indicate that Mo3Nb2O14-L has great potential for use as anode material for lithium-ion batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inferior reversibility of the formation/decomposition of the lithium peroxide (Li2O2) and its insolubility and insulation features result in poor energy efficiency and limited durability of state-of-the-art Li–O2 batteries. Herein, we elaborately designed sisal-like CoSe2 nanowires enriched with Se vacancies (VSe-CoSe2) anchored on a scaffold of magnetron-sputtered N-doped carbon cloth (N-CC) to address the above challenges. The synergistic coupling of vacancy regulation with interfacial interaction can be used to tune the ability to adsorb active oxygen and intermediate species and enhance the interfacial electron transfer during oxygen redox reactions. Experimental results demonstrate that the VSe-CoSe2@N-CC-based Li–O2 battery demonstrates a substantially decreased overpotential (∼0.56 V) and extraordinary durability (over 955 h). This work indicates that the synergistic coupling of vacancy modulation and interface interaction is a promising strategy for effectively enhancing the comprehensive performance of Li–O2 batteries, which provide prospective insights into the exploration of next-generation highly efficient metal–air batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Manganese (Mn) oxides are promising cathode materials for rechargeable aqueous Zn‐ion batteries. However, the Mn dissolution in weakly acidic electrolytes always hinders the development of better aqueous Zn–Mn batteries. Herein, a hydroxylated manganese oxide cathode material (H‐MnO2) is fabricated using an electrochemical method for stable aqueous Zn–Mn batteries without relying on the Mn2+ electrolyte additives. The partial hydroxylation of the oxides leads to charge redistribution of the material, changing the reaction thermodynamics and kinetics. Theoretical simulation suggests that the hydroxylation of manganese oxide promotes both Zn2+ adsorption thermodynamics and diffusion kinetics on the surface of H‐MnO2 but weakens the interaction between H+ and the electrode. Therefore, Zn2+ ions can be more reactive with the hydroxylated manganese oxide than H+ ions. Experimental results show that the Zn2+ insertion mechanism dominates the charge storage process of H‐MnO2, and the H+‐induced Mn dissolution reaction is effectively alleviated. Importantly, H‐MnO2 exhibits good cycling stability with 95% capacity retention over 5000 cycles at the current density of 3.8 A g−1 in the ZnSO4 electrolyte, outperforming the state‐of‐the‐art aqueous Zn–Mn batteries, even those with Mn2+ electrolyte additives. The findings provide new insights for designing stable manganese oxide cathodes in aqueous Zn–Mn batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aqueous zinc-sulfur (Zn-S) batteries show great potential for unlocking high energy and safety aqueous batteries. Yet, the sluggish kinetic and poor redox reversibility of the sulfur conversion reaction in aqueous solution challenge the development of Zn-S batteries. Here, we fabricate a high-performance Zn-S battery using highly water-soluble ZnI 2 as an effective catalyst. In situ experimental characterizations and theoretical calculations reveal that the strong interaction between I - and the ZnS nanoparticles (discharge product) leads to the atomic rearrangement of ZnS, weakening the Zn-S bonding, and thus facilitating the electrochemical oxidation reaction of ZnS to S. The aqueous Zn-S battery exhibited a high energy density of 742 Wh kg (sulfur) -1 at the power density of 210.8 W kg (sulfur) -1 and good cycling stability over 550 cycles. Our findings provide new insights about the iodide catalytic effect for cathode conversion reaction in Zn-S batteries, which is conducive to promoting the future development of high-performance aqueous batteries., (© 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Exploring oxygen electrodes with superior bifunctional catalytic activity and suitable architecture is an effective strategy to improve the performance of lithium-oxygen (Li-O 2 ) batteries. Herein, the internal electronic structure of Ni 2 P is regulated by heteroatom Co doping to improve its catalytic activity for oxygen redox reactions. Meanwhile, magnetron sputtering N-doped carbon cloth (N-CC) is used as a scaffold to enhance the electrical conductivity. The deliberately designed Co-Ni 2 P on N-CC (Co-Ni 2 P@N-CC) with a typical 3D interconnected architecture facilitates the formation of abundant solid-liquid-gas three-phase reaction interfaces inside the architecture. Furthermore, the rational catalyst/substrate interfacial interaction is capable of inducing a solvation-mediated pathway to form toroidal-Li 2 O 2 . The results show that the Co-Ni 2 P@N-CC based Li-O 2 battery exhibits an ultra-low overpotential (0.73 V), enhanced rate performance (4487 mA h g -1 at 500 mA g -1 ) and durability (stable operation over 671 h). The pouch-type battery based on the Co-Ni 2 P@N-CC flexible electrode runs stably for 581 min in air without obvious voltage attenuation. This work verifies that heterogeneous atom doping and interface interaction can remarkably strengthen the performance of Li-O 2 cells and thus pave new avenues towards developing high-performance metal-air batteries.

The degradation of oxygen electrodes caused by oxygen species in lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) batteries deteriorates their energy efficiency and cyclability and seriously hinders their commercial application. To achieve high energy efficiency and long-term cycle life, gradient-porous ultrathin FeCo2S4 nanosheets on Ni foam (FeCo2S4@Ni) were deliberately designed as a noncarbonaceous freestanding oxygen electrode for Li-O2 batteries. Notably, the gradient-porous structure in FeCo2S4@Ni can offer sufficient active sites as well as mitigate polarization caused by the mass transfer during discharge and charge. The synergistic effect of the two transition metals, Fe2+ and Co3+, optimizes their d-band electronic structure and enhances the intrinsic activity of the oxygen electrode. Benefiting from the above merits, the FeCo2S4@Ni based Li-O2 battery demonstrates greatly increased discharge capacity (8001 mA h g-1), improved rate capability (with a high capacity of 4401 mA h g-1 at 500 mA g-1), and enhanced cycling stability (with a low overpotential of below 1 V after 109 cycles). Our work demonstrates that the battery performance can be improved by regulating the structure and composition of the oxygen electrode and provides a promising strategy for developing high performance Li-O2 batteries.

Catalysts with high performance are urgently needed in order to accelerate the reaction kinetics of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in lithium-oxygen (Li-O 2 ) batteries. Herein, utilizing thermodynamically metastable Ti atoms on the Ti 3 C 2 Tx MXene nanosheet surface as the nucleation site, oxygen vacancy-rich TiO 2 nanoparticles were in situ fabricated on Ti 3 C 2 Tx nanosheets (V-TiO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 Tx) and used as the oxygen electrode of Li-O 2 batteries. Oxygen vacancy (Vo) can boost the migration rate of electrons and Li + as well as act as the active sites for catalyzing the ORR and OER. Based on the above merits, V-TiO 2 /Ti 3 C 2 Tx-based Li-O 2 battery shows improved performance including the ultralow overpotential of 0.21 V, high specific capacity of 11 487 mA h g -1 at a current density of 100 mA g -1 , and excellent round-trip efficiency (93%). This work proposes an effective strategy for researching high-performance oxygen electrodes for Li-O 2 batteries via introducing Vo-rich oxides on two-dimensional MXene.