Quinone-Amine Polymer Organic Cathodes with Excellent Conductivity and Low Solubility for High-Performance Lithium-Ion and Sodium-Ion Batteries

Organic cathode materials have attracted widespread attention due to their environmental friendliness, recyclability, high theoretical specific capacity, and flexible molecular design. However, their practical application is severely hindered by large battery polarization, slow reaction kinetics, and fast capacity decay caused by poor conductivity and high solubility. Here, we propose that these problems can be addressed by synthesizing quinone-amine polymers (DABQ) via a facile polymerization reaction. The aromatic amine bonds (−NH−) generated by the reaction serve as additional redox centers, thereby improving its redox kinetics. Furthermore, the aromatic amine bonds expand the conjugated structure and π-π stacking interactions, improving the electron transfer ability. The π-π stacking interactions and molecular entanglement caused by molecular chain elongation can also reduce material solubility. Consequently, the resulting cathode exhibits excellent cycle and rate performance. In Li-ion batteries, this strategy achieves better cycle (142.6 mAh g –1 after 200 cycles) and rate performance (94.2 mAh g –1 at 1000 mA g –1 ). A Na-ion battery using the DABQ cathode also exhibits excellent cycle performance (60.2 mAh g –1 after 500 cycles) and rate performance (33.5 mAh g –1 at 1000 mA g –1 ). By introducing quinone-ether polymers (DBHQ) for comparison, as well as employing density functional theory calculations and various characterizations, the synthesis mechanism, polymer structure, electrochemical behavior, and redox mechanism were clearly clarified. This study provides a new solution for solving the intrinsic issues of organic cathodes, and its results also hold potential application value in the field of energy storage.