A MOF-derived Cu₂S@NSC hybrid in which ultrathin Cu₂S nanoparticles are encapsulated in a N,S co-doped carbon matrix was developed, which possesses excellent electrochemical properties serving as a lithium-ion battery anode.

MoNiCo-Cl layered double hydroxides (LDHs) with rich oxygen vacancies are proposed as cathodes toward chloride ion batteries. Mo ⁶⁺ can not only modulate the electronic properties at chloride adsorption sites, but improve the redox activity of LDHs.

Chloride ion batteries (CIBs) have drawn growing attention as attractive candidates for large-scale energy storage technology because of their high theoretical energy densities (2500 Wh L⁻¹), dendrite-free characteristic and abundance of chloride-containing materials available worldwide. However, the further development of CIBs is greatly limited by sluggish Cl⁻ diffusion and distinct structural variation of cathode materials, resulting in the severe decayed capacity and inferior rate performance. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) materials possess regular pores/channels and flexible structural designability to accommodate charge carrier ions, but the application of MOFs in anion-type batteries has not been reported. Here, we demonstrate the first example of Ni(dpip) with two different opening sizes of tubular channels serves as the cathode for high performance CIB. The Ni-based MOF exhibited the stable reversible capacity of 155 mAh g⁻¹ with admirable low capacity decay of 0.026 % per cycle over 500 cycles and a superior kinetics of 10⁻¹⁰ cm2 S⁻¹ average diffusion coefficient for chloride ions as well. The high performance of Ni(dpip) cathode results from the synergetic redox couples of Ni metal nodes and N-ligands, the unique double-channels structure for reversible Cl-storage, and low chloride diffusion energy barrier. This work switches on the new application of MOF-based materials as cathode for CIBs.

Wide-temperature applications of sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) are severely limited by the sluggish ion insertion/diffusion kinetics of conversion-type anodes. Quantum-sized transition metal dichalcogenides possess unique advantages of charge delocalization and enrich uncoordinated electrons and short-range transfer kinetics, which are crucial to achieve rapid low-temperature charge transfer and high-temperature interface stability. Herein, a quantum-scale FeS₂ loaded on three-dimensional Ti₃C₂ MXene skeletons (FeS₂ QD/MXene) fabricated as SIBs anode, demonstrating impressive performance under wide-temperature conditions (− 35 to 65 °C). The theoretical calculations combined with experimental characterization interprets that the unsaturated coordination edges of FeS₂ QD can induce delocalized electronic regions, which reduces electrostatic potential and significantly facilitates efficient Na⁺ diffusion across a broad temperature range. Moreover, the Ti₃C₂ skeleton reinforces structural integrity via Fe–O–Ti bonding, while enabling excellent dispersion of FeS₂ QD. As expected, FeS₂ QD/MXene anode harvests capacities of 255.2 and 424.9 mAh g⁻¹ at 0.1 A g⁻¹ under − 35 and 65 °C, and the energy density of FeS₂ QD/MXene//NVP full cell can reach to 162.4 Wh kg⁻¹ at − 35 °C, highlighting its practical potential for wide-temperatures conditions. This work extends the uncoordinated regions induced by quantum-size effects for exceptional Na⁺ ion storage and diffusion performance at wide-temperatures environment.