Citation: Xiaoran Li, Wenqian Liu, Liwei Zhu, Yichun Gu, Changhui Sun, Peng Wang, Baojuan Xi, Shenglin Xiong, Nianxiang Shi. Highly matched NbN-TiN nano-heterocrystals immobilized in hollow porous N-doped carbon framework to achieve high-performance lithium–sulfur batteries[J]. Chinese Chemical Letters, ;2026, 37(9): 112788. doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2026.112788 shu

Highly matched NbN-TiN nano-heterocrystals immobilized in hollow porous N-doped carbon framework to achieve high-performance lithium–sulfur batteries

Xiaoran Li ^a ,
Wenqian Liu ^b ,
Liwei Zhu ^a ,
Yichun Gu ^a ,
Changhui Sun ^a ,
Peng Wang ^c ,
Baojuan Xi ^c ,
Shenglin Xiong ^c ,
Nianxiang Shi ^{a, *,}

a.
School of Chemistry and Chemistry Engineering, Qilu Normal University, Ji'nan 250200, China
b.
College of Preschool Education, Qilu Normal University, Ji'nan 250200, China
c.
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Shandong University, Ji'nan 250100, China

chesnx@qlnu.edu.cn

Received Date: 23 January 2026
Revised Date: 15 April 2026
Accepted Date: 16 April 2026
Available Online: 16 April 2026

Figures(6)

Commercialization of rechargeable lithium–sulfur batteries (LSBs) is severely hindered by the "shuttle effect" and their sluggish electrochemical kinetics. Herein, highly matched NbN/TiN heterocrystals with nanosize (< 5 nm) uniformly dispersed within in hollow porous N–doped carbon microspheres (NbN/TiN@N–C) was designed. DFT calculations and electrochemical tests demonstrate the remarkable improvement in anchoring lithium polysulfides (LiPSs) and sulfur redox kinetics. Specifically, the hollow porous frameworks can physically confine LiPSs and effectively alleviate volume changes, and simultaneously the immobilized NbN/TiN nanocrystals can strongly interact with LiPSs by the dual–chemical adsorption that the formation of Nb–S and Ti–S bonds. The nanosized NbN/TiN heterocrystals and their clusters induce maximum reaction surface and numerous activity sites. Significantly, the heterocrystals, based on high lattice matching and stable built–in electric field, endows smooth channels for Li⁺ diffusion and maximum electron transfer ability to catalysts. The LSBs with NbN/TiN@N–C separator delivers ultralong cycling stability that sustained 545.5 mAh/g with only 0.056% capacity decay per cycle over 1000 cycles at 2 C and high rate performance with 663.7 mAh/g at 10 C. This work provides a novel insight for regulating LiPSs through highly matched binary heterogeneous catalyst to advance the industrial application of LSBs.
- NbN/TiN heteroccrystal,
- Shuttling effect,
- High lattice matching,
- Built–in electric field,
- Lithium–sulfur batteries
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