A new rechargeable sodium battery utilizing reversible topotactic oxygen extraction/insertion of CaFeO(z) (2.5 ≤ z ≤ 3) in an organic electrolyte.

At present, significant research efforts are being devoted both to identifying means of upgrading existing batteries, including lithium ion types, and also to developing alternate technologies, such as sodium ion, metal-air, and lithium-sulfur batteries. In addition, new battery systems incorporating novel electrode reactions are being identified. One such system utilizes the reaction of electrolyte ions with oxygen atoms reversibly extracted and reinserted topotactically from cathode materials. Batteries based on this system allow the use of various anode materials, such as lithium and sodium, without the requirement to develop new cathode intercalation materials. In the present study, this concept is employed and a new battery based on a CaFeO3 cathode with a sodium anode is demonstrated.