Three-Dimensional Vanadium and Nitrogen Dual-Doped TiC Film with Ultra-High Specific Capacitance and High Volumetric Energy Density for Zinc-Ion Hybrid Capacitors.

Zinc-ion hybrid capacitors (ZICs) can achieve high energy and power density, ultralong cycle life, and a wide operating voltage window, and they are widely used in wearable devices, portable electronics devices, and other energy storage fields. The design of advanced ZICs with high specific capacity and energy density remains a challenge. In this work, a novel kind of V, N dual-doped TiC film with a three-dimensional (3D) porous structure (3D V-, N-TiC) based on Zn-ion pre-intercalation can be fabricated via a simple synthetic process. The stable 3D structure and heteroatom doping provide abundant ion transport channels and numerous surface active sites. The prepared 3D V-, N-TiC film can deliver unexpectedly high specific capacitance of 855 F g (309 mAh g) and demonstrates 95.26% capacitance retention after 5000 charge/discharge cycles. In addition, the energy storage mechanism of 3D V-, N-TiC electrodes is the chemical adsorption of H/Zn, which is confirmed by ex situ XRD and ex situ XPS. ZIC full cells with a competitive energy density (103 Wh kg) consist of a 3D V-, N-TiC cathode and a zinc foil anode. The impressive results provide a feasible strategy for developing high-performance MXene-based energy storage devices in various energy-related fields.