Molten salt-assisted synthesis of bismuth nanosheets with long-term cyclability at high rates for sodium-ion batteries

Bismuth is a promising anode material for sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) due to its high capacity and suitable working potential. However, the large volume change during alloying/dealloying would lead to poor cycling performance. Herein, we have constructed a 3D hierarchical structure assembled by bismuth nanosheets, addressing the challenges of fast kinetics, and providing efficient stress and strain relief room. The uniform bismuth nanosheets are prepared via a molten salt-assisted aluminum thermal reduction method. Compared with the commercial bismuth powder, the bismuth nanosheets present a larger specific surface area and interlayer spacing, which is beneficial for sodium ion insertion and release. As a result, the bismuth nanosheet anode presents excellent sodium storage properties with an ultralong cycle life of 6500 cycles at a high current density of 10 A g−1, and an excellent capacity retention of 87% at an ultrahigh current rate of 30 A g−1. Moreover, the full SIBs that paired with the Na3V2(PO4)3/rGO cathode exhibited excellent performance. This work not only presents a novel strategy for preparing bismuth nanosheets with significantly increased interlayer spacing but also offers a straightforward synthesis method utilizing low-cost precursors. Furthermore, the outstanding performance demonstrated by these nanosheets indicates their potential for various practical applications.