We report on a particularly stable 3 V all-solid-state sodium–ion battery built using a closo-borate based electrolyte, namely Na₄(B₁₂H₁₂)(B₁₀H₁₀). The battery employs a sodium metal anode and a NaCrO₂ cathode. Battery performance is enhanced through the creation of an intimate cathode–electrolyte interface resulting in reversible and stable cycling with a capacity of 85 mAh/g at C/20 and 80 mAh/g at C/5 with more than 90% capacity retention after 20 cycles at C/20 and 85% after 250 cycles at C/5. We also discuss the effect of cycling outside the electrochemical stability window and show that electrolyte decomposition leads to faster though not critical capacity fading. Our results demonstrate that owing to their high stability and conductivity closo-borate based electrolytes could play a significant role in the development of a competitive all-solid-state sodium–ion battery technology.

L. Duchêne, R.-S. Kühnel, D. Rentsch, A. Remhof, H. Hagemann, C. Battaglia, Chem. Comm. 2017, 53, 4195

L. Duchêne, R.-S. Kühnel, E. Stilp, E. Cuervo Reyes, A. Remhof, H. Hagemann, C. Battaglia, Energy & Environmental Science 2017, 10, 2609