Revealing the illumination effect on the discharge products in high‐performance Li–O2 batteries with heterostructured photocatalysts
Hao Gong,
Tao Wang,
Kun Chang,
Peng Li,
Lequan Liu,
Xingyu Yu,
Bin Gao,
Hairong Xue,
Renzhi Ma,
Jianping He,
Jinhua Ye
Affiliations
Hao Gong
Department of Chemistry and Materials Science, College of Science Nanjing Forestry University Nanjing China
Tao Wang
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Kun Chang
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Peng Li
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Lequan Liu
TJU‐NIMS International Collaboration Laboratory, School of Material Science and Engineering Tianjin University Tianjin China
Xingyu Yu
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Bin Gao
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Hairong Xue
International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI‐MANA) National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) Ibaraki Japan
Renzhi Ma
International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (WPI‐MANA) National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) Ibaraki Japan
Jianping He
Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Materials and Technology for Energy Conversion, College of Materials Science and Technology Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China
Jinhua Ye
TJU‐NIMS International Collaboration Laboratory, School of Material Science and Engineering Tianjin University Tianjin China
Abstract Aprotic lithium–oxygen batteries (LOBs) have been recognized as novel energy storage devices for their outstanding specific energy density, while the large discharge/charge overpotential is a tough barrier to be overcome. Here, hetero‐structured MoS2/ZnIn2S4 nanosheets have been prepared to capture visible light and the generated charge carriers are utilized for promoting both the oxygen reduction reaction and the oxygen evolution reaction. With the light illumination in the discharge process, the abundant photo‐inspired electrons serve as the reaction sites to promote the reduction of O2 into LiO2 which is finally deposited as Li2O2. On the contrary, the generated holes in the valence band can contribute to the low oxidization potential of Li2O2 during the charge process. It delivers a low charge potential of 3.29 V, with an excellent resulting energy efficiency of 96.7%, much superior to that of 69.2% in the dark condition. It is noted that the involvement of photoelectrons has influenced the growth of Li2O2 films on the MoS2/ZnIn2S4 nanosheets through the surface‐adsorption pathway. The insights from the theoretical calculation confirm that the photoelectrons favor the absorption of LiO2 and the formation of the Li2O2 film through the surface route. Therefore, this paper provides a deeper understanding of the mechanism of photo‐inspired charge carriers in LOBs and will enable further exploration of photo‐involved energy storage systems.
