In this work, a modified separator coated with a functional layer of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) anchored by cerium oxide (CeO₂) nanoparticles was developed. The superior conductivity of RGO and chemical immobilization of high-ordered sulfur-related species (mainly Li₂S_n 4 ≤ n ≤ 8) of CeO₂ yielded batteries with enhanced characteristics. A remarkable original capacity of 1136 mAh g⁻¹ was obtained at 0.1 C with capacity retention ratio of 75.7% after 100 charge/discharge cycles. Overall, these data indicate that the separator with CeO₂/RGO composite is promising to suppress the shuttling of polysulfides for better utilization of the active material.

ZnO is a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs); however, its practical application is hindered primarily by its large volume variation upon lithiation. To overcome this drawback, we synthesized ZnO/graphene composites using the combination of a simple hydrothermal reaction and spray drying. These composites consisted of well-dispersed ZnO nanorods anchored to graphene. The folded three-dimensional graphene spheres provided a high conductivity, high surface area, and abundant defects. LIB with an anode composed of our novel ZnO/graphene material demonstrated a high initial discharge capacity of 1583 mAh g⁻¹ at 200 mA g⁻¹.

A gel polymer electrolyte was formed by trapping an optimized Na⁺/Zn²⁺ mixed-ion aqueous electrolyte in a polyacrylonitrile nanofiber polymer matrix. This electrolyte was used in a novel aqueous sodium-ion battery (ASIB) system, which was assembled by using a zinc anode and Na₄Mn₉O₁₈ cathode. The nanorod-like Na₄Mn₉O₁₈ was synthesized by a hydrothermal soft chemical reaction. The structural and morphological measurement confirmed that the highly crystalline Na₄Mn₉O₁₈ nanorods are uniformly distributed. Electrochemical tests of Na₄Mn₉O₁₈//Zn gel polymer battery demonstrated its high cycle stability along with a good rate of performance. The battery delivers an initial discharge capacity of 96 mAh g⁻¹, and 64 mAh g⁻¹ after 200 cycles at a high cycling rate of 1 C. Our results demonstrate that the Na₄Mn₉O₁₈//Zn gel polymer battery is a promising and safe high-performance battery.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are the most prospective energy storage devices. Nevertheless, the poor conductivity of sulfur and the shuttling phenomenon of polysulfides hinder its application. In this paper, flower-like MoS₂/graphene nanocomposite is prepared and deposited on a multi-functional separator to enhance the electrochemical behavior of Li-S batteries. The results demonstrated that the MoS₂/graphene-coated separator is contributing to inhibit the shuttling phenomenon of polysulfides and improve the integrity of sulfur electrode. The initial discharge capacity of the battery using MoS₂/graphene-coated separator at 0.2 C was up to 1516 mAh g⁻¹. After 100 cycles, a reversible capacity of 880 mAh g⁻¹ and a coulombic efficiency of 98.7% were obtained. The improved electrochemical behavior can be due to the nanostructure and Mo-S bond of the MoS₂/graphene composite, which can combine physical shielding and chemisorption to prohibit the shuttle effect of polysulfides. The results prove that the MoS₂/graphene-coated separator has the potential for feasible application in Li-S batteries to enhance their electrochemical performance.

By using ZnO nanorods as an ideal sacrificial template, one-dimensional (1-D) ZnS nanotubes with a mean diameter of 10 nm were successfully synthesized by hydrothermal method. The phase composition and microstructure of the ZnS nanotubes were characterized by using XRD (X-ray diffraction), SEM (scanning electron micrograph), and TEM (transmission electronic microscopy) analysis. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and nitrogen sorption isotherms measurements were also used to study the information on the surface chemical compositions and specific surface area of the sample. The prepared ZnS nanotubes were used as anode materials in lithium-ion batteries. Results show that the ZnS nanotubes deliver an impressive prime discharge capacity as high as 950 mAh/g. The ZnS nanotubes also exhibit an enhanced cyclic performance. Even after 100 charge/discharge cycles, the discharge capacity could still remain at 450 mAh/g. Moreover, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements were also carried out to evaluate the ZnS electrodes.

Herein, we demonstrate the fabrication of a three-dimensional (3D) polypyrrole-coated-porous graphene (PPy/PG) composite through in-situ polymerization of pyrrole monomer on PG surface. The PPy/PG displays a 3D hierarchical porous structure and the resulting PPy/PG hybrid serves as a conductive trap to lithium polysulfides enhancing the electrochemical performances. Owing to the superior conductivity and peculiar structure, a high initial discharge capacity of 1020 mAh g⁻¹ and the reversible capacity of 802 mAh g⁻¹ over 200 cycles are obtained for the S/PPy/PG cathode at 0.1 C, remaining the remarkable cyclic stability. In addition, the S/PPy/PG cathodes demonstrate an excellent rate performance exhibiting 477 mAh g⁻¹ at 2 C.