Interface Engineering of Carbon‐Based Nanocomposites for Advanced Electrochemical Energy Storage

Abstract

Abstract Carbon‐based nanocomposites represent a fascinating class of materials, as they always demonstrate synergistic effects for energy storage applications when compared to their singular components. It has been found that interface engineering of carbon‐based nanocomposites, including structural design, synthesis, processing, and characterization of well‐defined interface between carbon and noncarbon materials, holds huge potential for enabling unprecedented electrochemical properties and fundamental breakthroughs. Accordingly, a review focusing on the research progress in this area is prepared on the basis of systematic analysis of literature in the following for academia and industries. Here, the interactions at the interface of nanocomposite structures that lead to significant synergistic effects and superior electrochemical performance are presented and highlighted. First, the efforts that have been made on preparation methodologies of carbon‐based nanocomposites, including noncovalent and covalent approaches, are comprehensively outlined. Then, particular attention is placed on the effects of the interface engineering on the electrochemical performance of different kinds of electrode materials applied in supercapacitors, lithium‐ion batteries, and lithium–sulfur batteries. Finally, the challenges that still persist and the prospects of further development of advanced carbon‐based nanocomposite electrode materials by manipulating interfacial interaction are discussed.