Granular Vanadium Nitride (VN) Cathode for High-Capacity and Stable Zinc-Ion Batteries

Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries (RZIBs) have attracted wide attention due to their advantages of high safety, low cost, low toxicity, and high energy density of the zinc anode. However, due to low discharge current, low specific energy density, poor cycle stability, and other factors, the development of aqueous zinc-ion batteries is limited. Herein, we report the synthesis of high-stability vanadium nitride (VN) particles by reduction and nitrification of V2O5 in an NH3 atmosphere. At a current density of 0.1 A g–1, VN particles have a specific capacity of 496 mAh g–1, benefiting from their tiny particle size and porous, stacked structure. Even at a current density of 20 A g–1, the capacity after activation is 153 mAh g–1, and after 8000 stable cycles, they still have a capacity of 82 mAh g–1. VN particles can provide a high power density of 305 Wh kg–1 at a power density of 393 W kg–1. The results show that VN particles are a promising ZIB cathode material and provide an idea for the study of ZIB cathode materials with high energy density and high cycling stability.