Electrolyte-Regulated Solid-Electrolyte Interphase Enables Long Cycle Life Performance in Organic Cathodes for Potassium-Ion Batteries

Organic cathode materials as economical and environment-friendly alternatives to inorganic cathode materials have attracted comprehensive attention in potassium-ion batteries (KIBs). Nonetheless, active material dissolution and mismatched electrolytes result in insufficient cycle life that definitely hinders their practical applications. Here, a significantly improved cycle life of 1000 cycles (80% capacity retention) on a practically insoluble organic cathode material, anthraquinone-1,5-disulfonic acid sodium salt, is realized, in KIBs through a solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) regulation strategy by ether-based electrolytes. Such an excellent performance is attributed to the robust SEI film and fast reaction kinetics. More importantly, the ether-electrolyte-derived SEI film has a protective inorganic-rich inner layer arising from the prior decomposition of potassium salts to solvents, as revealed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis and computational studies on molecular orbital energy levels. The findings shed light on the critical roles of electrolytes and the corresponding SEI films in enhancing performance of organic cathodes in KIBs.