posted on 2023-12-18, 07:33authored byKaram Shreteh, Sandhiya Murugesan, Iman Alkrenawi, Noa Afik, Michael Volokh, Taleb Mokari
Bimetallic
alloy materials attract interest owing to their properties
and stability compared to pure metals, especially alloys with nanoscale
dimensions. Metal antimony (MSb) alloys, specifically NiSb, are widely
used for charge storage applications due to their high stability.
Most synthetic approaches to form these materials require drastic
conditions (e.g., high temperatures, potent reducing agents, and extended
reaction times), limiting control over the final morphology. The other
viable approach is a galvanic replacement that uses unstable materials
as precursors. In this work, we present a new and facile method to
prepare several MSb (M = Ni, Co, Ag) alloys with shape control by
reacting Sb2S3 particles with a metal(M)-sulfide
single source precursor in trioctylphosphine (TOP) under mild conditions.
Furthermore, we explore the role of TOP as a reducing agent and demonstrate
how both alloy constituents are crucial for mutual stabilization.
Electrochemical studies are also performed on these NiSb particles,
showing their ambipolar nature and allowing their utilization as the
active ingredient in the demonstrated high-energy-density symmetric
supercapacitor.