The durable red phosphorus (RP) anode for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has attracted great attention owing to its high theoretical specific capacity (2596 mA∙h∙g−1) and moderate lithiation potential (~ 0.7 V vs. Li+/Li). However, its intrinsic poor electrical conductivity, enormous volume expansion, and soluble intermediates (lithium polyphosphides, LixPPs) lead to poor cycling performance. To overcome these issues, we introduce a new type of wrinkle carbon spheres as the host for loading phosphorus through a vaporization–condensation strategy. Density functional theory calculations reveal that the wrinkle carbon sphere shows strong binding energy with P4 molecule, accelerating the adsorption and polymerization of P4, thus enhancing RP conversion in the preparation process. In the lithiation/delithiation process, the wrinkle carbon has strong bonding with phosphorus and strong adsorption with LixPPs, resulting in excellent cycling performance. The design strategy to modify RP polymerization via reforming the interaction between wrinkle carbon spheres and phosphorus expands the application of RP for LIBs and beyond.
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Active and durable electrocatalysts for methanol oxidation reaction are of critical importance to the commercial viability of direct methanol fuel cell, which has already attracted growing popularities. However, current methanol oxidation electrocatalysts fall far short of expectations and suffer from excessive use of noble metal, mediocre activity, and rapid decay. Here we report the Pt anchored on NiFe-LDHs surface hybrid for stable methanol oxidation in alkaline media. Based on the high intrinsic methanol oxidation activity of Pt nanoparticles, the substrates NiFe-LDHs further enhanced anti-poisoning ability and maintained unaffected stability after 200,000 s cycle test compared to commercial Pt/C catalyst. The use of NiFe-LDHs is believed to play the decisive role to evenly disperse Pt nanoparticles on their surface using single atomic dispersed Fe as anchoring sites, making full use of abundant OH groups and subsequent facilitating the oxidative removal of carbonaceous poison on neighboring Pt sites. This work highlights the specialty of NiFe-LDHs in improving the overall efficiency of methanol oxidation reaction.