Revitalized interest in vanadium pentoxide as cathode material for lithium-ion batteries and beyond

Revitalized interest in vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) arises from two very important developments in rechargeable batteries. One is the push on lithium-ion batteries for higher energy density batteries: using lithium metal as anode and searching for higher capacity and high voltage cathode. Using lithium metal anode eliminates the big obstacle for V2O5 cathode that does not come with lithium ions. V2O5 possesses the highest reversible capacity among known cathode materials. Another is the recent intensive research for cathode materials beyond Li-ion batteries (LIBs). In the past several years, interest in complementary alkali-ion battery technologies has seen a tremendous resurgence. Out of the set of alternative chemistries, V2O5 has seen the most considerable and promising gains as a cathode for Na-ion battery (NIB), Mg-ion battery (MIB), and other metal batteries. Unlike LIBs, these systems face a set of new challenges as dictated by the properties of the transported ionic species and the consequent effects on the electrode materials. The purpose of this review is to summarize the most interesting or surprising phenomena, the important questions raised and next experimental and theoretical steps to advance V2O5 cathode materials in the field of metal batteries. This review focused on selected topics covering the influences of surface chemistry, crystallinity, doping, defects, and nanostructures on the lithium-ion intercalation properties and recent developments on other metal batteries including NIBs and MIBs. The perspectives and remaining challenges for V2O5 based cathode materials have been discussed.