title: Graphene-Analogues Boron Nitride Nanosheets Confining Ionic Liquids: A High-Performance Quasi-Liquid Solid Electrolyte.
abstract: Solid electrolytes are one of the most promising electrolyte systems for safe lithium batteries, but the low ionic conductivity of these electrolytes seriously hinders the development of efficient lithium batteries. Here, a novel class of graphene-analogues boron nitride (g-BN) nanosheets confining an ultrahigh concentration of ionic liquids (ILs) in an interlayer and out-of-layer chamber to give rise to a quasi-liquid solid electrolyte (QLSE) is reported. The electron-insulated g-BN nanosheet host with a large specific surface area can confine ILs as much as 10 times of the host's weight to afford high ionic conductivity (3.85 × 10(-3) S cm(-1) at 25 °C, even 2.32 × 10(-4) S cm(-1) at -20 °C), which is close to that of the corresponding bulk IL electrolytes. The high ionic conductivity of QLSE is attributed to the enormous absorption for ILs and the confining effect of g-BN to form the ordered lithium ion transport channels in an interlayer and out-of-layer of g-BN. Furthermore, the electrolyte displays outstanding electrochemical properties and battery performance. In principle, this work enables a wider tunability, further opening up a new field for the fabrication of the next-generation QLSE based on layered nanomaterials in energy conversion devices.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710049, China.|Chemical Science Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
authors.forename: Mingtao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Chemical Science Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.|School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, China.
authors.forename: Wenshuai
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Chemical Science Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
authors.forename: Pengfei
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Chemical Science Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.|School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, China.
authors.forename: Yanhong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chao
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710049, China.
authors.forename: Bolun
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, China.
authors.forename: Huaming
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.|Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
authors.forename: Albinab
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Borisevich
authors.affiliation: Chemical Science Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA.
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dai
keywords: boron nitride; ionic liquids, lithium batteries; nanosheets; solid electrolytes