The aqueous metal-sulfide batteries (AMSBs) have attracted research interest due to their high capacity, environmentally friendly qualities, and the accessibility of raw materials. However, the design strategies for metal-sulfide cathode have rarely been reported. Here, the copperactivated sphalerite in which Zn 2 + is substituted by Cu 2 + through ion exchange has been introduced for the first time as cathode for aqueous Cu/ZnS batteries. After sphalerite transformed to CuS, a two-step conversion of CuS!Cu 7 S 4 ! Cu 2 S storage mechanism has been proposed. At 0.7 A g À 1 current density, the capacity can reach 532.4 mAh g À 1 after 100 cycles. When cycled once at a current density of 35 mA g À 1 , the initial reversible capacity can reach 461 mAh g À 1 under 1 A g À 1 . Furthermore, the assembled Zn// ZnS hybrid ion cell delivers an energy of up to 460 Wh kg À 1 , which is better than for many AMSBs.
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