Understanding the Electrochemical Mechanism of the New Iron-Based Mixed-Phosphate Na4Fe3(PO4)2(P2O7) in a Na Rechargeable Battery

TLDR: In this paper, the authors investigated the electrochemical mechanism of NaxFe3(PO4)2(P2O7) (1 ≤ x ≤ 4), which was recently proposed as a promising mixed-polyanion cathode for Na rechargeable batteries, using first principles calculations and experiments.

Abstract: Compounds with a mixed polyanion framework have recently gained attention as a new class of compounds for material exploration. The potential tunability of the structure by using various combinations of polyanions can potentially lead to a novel cathode. However, the redox reaction in complex structures often involves complex structural evolutions during the electrochemical reaction, which require careful analysis. We investigated the electrochemical mechanism of NaxFe3(PO4)2(P2O7) (1 ≤ x ≤ 4), which was recently proposed as a promising mixed-polyanion cathode for Na rechargeable batteries, using first principles calculations and experiments. We discovered that the de/sodiation of the NaxFe3(PO4)2(P2O7) electrode occurs via a one-phase reaction with a reversible Fe2+/Fe3+ redox reaction and accompanies an exceptionally small volumetric change of less than 4%. Na ion intercalation usually induces a large volumetric change in conventional systems; therefore, this small volume change is unusual and was attri...