Abstract:
Na
3V
2(PO
4)
2O
2F (NVPOF) has received considerable interest as a promising cathode material for sodium-ion batteries because of its high working voltage and good structural/thermal stability. However, the sluggish electrode reaction resulting from its low intrinsic electronic conductivity significantly restricts its electrochemical performance and thus its practical application. Herein, Nb-doped Na
3V
2−xNb
x(PO
4)
2O
2F/graphene (rGO) composites (
x = 0, 0.05, 0.1) were prepared using a solvothermal method followed by calcination. Compared to the un-doped NVPOF/rGO, doping V-site with high-valence Nb element (Nb
5+) (Na
3V
1.95Nb
0.05(PO
4)
2O
2F/rGO (NVN05POF/rGO)) can result in the generated V
4+/V
3+ mixed-valence, ensuring the lower bandgap and thus the increased intrinsic electronic conductivity. Besides, the expanded lattice space favors the Na
+ migration. With the structure feature where NVN05POF particles are attached to the rGO sheets, the electrode reaction kinetics is further accelerated owing to the well-constructed electron conductive network. As a consequence, the as-prepared NVN05POF/rGO sample exhibits a high specific capacity of ~72 mAh·g
−1 at 10C (capacity retention of 65.2% (vs
. 0.5C)) and excellent long-term cycling stability with the capacity fading rate of ~0.099% per cycle in 500 cycles at 5C.