Rechargeable potassium–selenium batteries

Abstract

Rechargeable potassium–selenium (K–Se) batteries, as an emerging electrochemical energy storage system, has recently captured intensive attention due to the desirable natural abundance and low redox potential of elemental potassium as well as the relatively high electronic conductivity and impressive theoretical volumetric capacity of elemental selenium. Although great progress on cathode materials design and electrochemical performance improvement has been made, K–Se batteries are still confronted with a series of key challenges, including low reactive activity, shuttle effect, volume expansion, potassium dendrite growth, and high chemical activity of potassium metal. The recent advances in rechargeable K–Se batteries are comprehensively summarized with an emphasis on discussing the electrochemical mechanisms and central challenges, presenting the synthesis, properties, and electrochemical performance of selenium-based cathode materials, and extending potential tactics for tackling the key issues and developmental directions for future research.