Compliant battery design strategy for wearable power sources with high degree of flexibility and stretchability.

Prussian Blue Analogue (PBA)-Zn aqueous batteries are attractive because of the high potential of PBA against Zn (~1.7 V), relative safety of the system, and high rate capability. But, despite the long cycle life of PBA half-cells, full PBA-Zn battery systems studied thus far have typically reported only up to 100 cycles and suffer significant capacity fade beyond that. In this work we demonstrate that the loss in capacity retention and cycle life is a combined effect of Zn 2+ ion poisoning at the PBA cathode, as well as dendrite formation in the zinc anode. We address both these issues via the use of a dual ion (Na + as the primary charge carrier) electrolyte and hyper-dendritic Zinc (HD Zn) as the anode. The copper hexacyanoferrate (CuHcf) vs. HD Zn system with Na + ion electrolyte demonstrated herein exhibits 90% (83%) capacity retention after 300 (500) cycles at a 5C rate and a 3% reduction in usable capacity from 1C to 5C. Detailed characterization is done using in situ synchrotron energy-dispersive XRD (EDXRD), conventional XRD, XPS, SEM, TEM, and electrochemical techniques.

The low cost, significant reduction potential and relative safety of the zinc electrode is a common hope for a reductant in secondary batteries, but it is limited mainly to primary implementation due to shape change. In this work, we exploit such shape change for the benefit of static electrodes through the electrodeposition of hyper-dendritic nanoporous zinc foam. Electrodeposition of zinc foam resulted in nanoparticles formed on secondary dendrites in a three-dimensional network with a particle size distribution of 54.1-96.0 nm. The nanoporous zinc foam contributed to highly oriented crystals, high surface area and more rapid kinetics in contrast to conventional zinc in alkaline mediums. The anode material presented had a utilization of 88% at full depth-of-discharge (DOD) at various rates indicating a superb rate capability. The rechargeability of Zn 0 /Zn 2+ showed significant capacity retention over 100 cycles at a 40% DOD to ensure that the dendritic core structure was imperforated. The dendritic architecture was densified upon charge-discharge cycling and presented superior performance compared with bulk zinc electrodes.

Wireless sensor networks have become integral to enabling numerous applications for the Internet of Things, such as environmental sensing or healthcare monitoring. Powering these networks has been the focus of significant research efforts due to the need for reliable and continuous operation of the sensing nodes. In this review, we outline the progress made in the sensing nodes with a particular focus on their power demands. These requirements are used as a framework for surveying the theoretical limits and developments for various power sources, including energy storage, power distribution, and power scavenging techniques. Finally, we conclude by identifying that harvesting techniques are largely insufficient for powering IoT nodes due to limited power densities or inconsistencies as to when power is harvested; accordingly, direct wiring and storage sources such as batteries are the most promising approaches for IoT applications.

A Bi2O3 in β-MnO2 composite cathode material has been synthesized using a simple hydrothermal method and cycled in a mixed KOH-LiOH electrolyte with a range of concentrations. We show that, at a KOH:LiOH molar ratio of 1:3, both proton insertion and lithium insertion occur, allowing access to a higher fraction of the theoretical capacity of the MnO2 while preventing the formation of ZnMn2O4. This enables a capacity of 360 mAh/g for over 60 cycles, with cycling limited more by anode properties than traditional cathodic failure mechanisms. The structural changes occurring during cycling are characterized using electron microscopy and in situ synchrotron energy-dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDXRD) techniques. This mixed electrolyte shows exceptional cyclability and capacity and can be used as a drop-in replacement for current alkaline batteries, potentially drastically improving their cycle life and creating a wide range of new applications for this energy storage technology.