A High-Temperature Na-Ion Battery: Boosting the Rate Capability and Cycle Life by Structure Engineering

High-temperature sodium ion batteries (SIBs) have drawn significant heed recently for large-scale energy storage. Yet, conventional SIBs are in the depths of inferior charge/discharge efficiency and cyclability at elevated temperatures. Rational structure design is highly desirable. Hence, a 3D hierarchical flower architecture self-assembled by carbon-coated Na₃ V₂ (PO₄ )₃ (NVP) nanosheets (NVP@C-NS-FL) is fabricated via a microwave-assisted glycerol-mediated hydrothermal reaction combined with a post heat-treatment. The growth mechanism of NVP@C-NS-FL is systematically investigated, by forming a microspherical glycerol/polyglycerol-NVP complex initially and then converting into flower-like architecture during the subsequent annealing at a low temperature ramping rate. Benefiting from the integrated structure, fast Na⁺ transportation, and highly effective heat transfer, the as-obtained NVP@C-NS-FL exhibits an excellent high-temperature SIB performance, e.g., 65 mAh g^-1 (100 C) after 1000 cycles under 60 °C. When coupled with NaTi₂ (PO₄ )₃ anode, the full cell can still display superior power capability of 1.4 kW kg^-1 and long-term cyclability (2000 cycles) under 60 °C.