Recently, the Junkai Wang team from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (School of Carbon Neutrality Future Technology) at Shantou University made new progress in the research field high-performance cathode catalysts for lithium–oxygen batteries. The related research findings were published under the title “Li/O dual-defect modulation strategy to restructure LiNi_1-x-yCo_xMnyO₂ surface for high-performance lithium-oxygen battery catalysts” in Sustainable Materials and Technologies (impact factor: 9.7) in the field of chemical materials.

Paper link:

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.susmat.2026.e01899

English abstract of the paper:

The design of high-performance cathode catalysts is a key aspect of lithiumoxygen battery research. A Li/O dual-defect modulation strategy for electrochemical delithiation was proposed to convert waste LiNi_1-x-yCo_xMn_yO₂ (NCM) into NCM-Ir-120, which demonstrated superior performance in both OER electrocatalysis and lithiumoxygen battery applications. The decoration of the NCM surface with Ir nanoparticles induces interfacial charge reorganization, which effectively tunes the oxidation states of the transition metal and enhances the site reactivity. Electrochemical delithiation further increases the density of Li/O vacancies in NCM-Ir-120, optimizes its adsorption energy for LiO₂ and Li₂O₂, and diminishes the reaction energy barrier for the lithiumoxygen battery. As a lithiumoxygen battery cathode, it achieved a substantial discharge capacity of 14,441 mAh g⁻¹ along with a low charge plateau at 3.55 V, while maintained excellent cycling stability over 42 consecutive cycles. Even after 115 cycles at 1000 mA g⁻¹, it retains its discharge capability. In addition, the NCM-Ir-120 catalyst demonstrated exceptional electrocatalytic OER activity, achieved a lower overpotential of 328 mV at 10 mA cm⁻² compared to pristine NCM (470 mV) and NCM-Ir (369 mV). This study effectively demonstrates the significant potential of interface engineering and defect design in both lithium-ion cathode material recycling and efficient catalyst utilization.