The rapid advance of mild aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) is driving the development of the energy storage system market. But the thorny issues of Zn anodes, mainly including dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution, and corrosion, severely reduce the performance of ZIBs. To commercialize ZIBs, researchers must overcome formidable challenges. Research about mild aqueous ZIBs is still developing. Various technical and scientific obstacles to designing Zn anodes with high stripping efficiency and long cycling life have not been resolved. Moreover, the performance of Zn anodes is a complex scientific issue determined by various parameters, most of which are often ignored, failing to achieve the maximum performance of the cell. This review proposes a comprehensive overview of existing Zn anode issues and the corresponding strategies, frontiers, and development trends to deeply comprehend the essence and inner connection of degradation mechanism and performance. First, the formation mechanism of dendrite growth, hydrogen evolution, corrosion, and their influence on the anode are analyzed. Furthermore, various strategies for constructing stable Zn anodes are summarized and discussed in detail from multiple perspectives. These strategies are mainly divided into interface modification, structural anode, alloying anode, intercalation anode, liquid electrolyte, non-liquid electrolyte, separator design, and other strategies. Finally, research directions and prospects are put forward for Zn anodes. This contribution highlights the latest developments and provides new insights into the advanced Zn anode for future research.

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Photocatalytic hydrogen production is crucial for solar-to-chemical conversion process, wherein high-efficiency photocatalysts lie in the heart of this area. A photocatalyst of hierarchically mesoporous titanium phosphonate based metal-organic frameworks, featuring well-structured spheres, a periodic mesostructure, and large secondary mesoporosity, are rationally designed with the complex of polyelectrolyte and cathodic surfactant serving as the template. The well-structured hierarchical porosity and homogeneously incorporated phosphonate groups can favor the mass transfer and strong optical absorption during the photocatalytic reactions. Correspondingly, the titanium phosphonates exhibit significantly improved photocatalytic hydrogen evolution rate along with impressive stability. This work can provide more insights into designing advanced photocatalysts for energy conversion and render a tunable platform in photoelectrochemistry.

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Rechargeable aqueous Zn–MnO2 batteries using a mild electrolyte have attracted considerable interest because of their high output voltage, high safety, low cost, and environmental friendliness. However, poor cycling stability remains a significant issue for their applications. Equally, the energy storage mechanism involved is still controversial thus far. Herein, porous polyfurfural/MnO2 (PFM) nanocomposites are prepared via a facile one-step method. When tested in a rechargeable aqueous Zn–MnO2 cell, the PFM nanocomposites deliver high specific capacity, considerable rate performance, and excellent long-term cyclic stability. Based on the experimental results, the role of the hydrated basic zinc sulfate layer being linked to the cycling stability of the aqueous rechargeable zinc-ion batteries is revealed. The mechanistic details of the insertion reaction based on the H+ ion storage mechanism are proposed, which plays a crucial role in maintaining the cycling performance of the rechargeable aqueous Zn–MnO2 cell. We expect that this work will provide an insight into the energy storage mechanism of MnO2 in aqueous systems and pave the way for the design of long-term cycling stable electrode materials for rechargeable aqueous Zn–MnO2 batteries.

Engineering intrinsic selenium vacancies (Se-vacancies) was achieved in mechanically exfoliated WSe monolayer nanosheets (WSe MLNSs) via an annealing treatment. Our theoretical and experimental results reveal that these Se-vacancies can efficiently activate and optimize the basal planes of the WSe MLNSs. As expected, the optimized catalyst exhibits efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution.

Zn–Ni–Co ternary hydroxide nanoarrays with a controlled morphology are used as the cathode material for supercapacitors for the first time.

We report a macroscopic stainless-steel-fiber@HZSM-5 core-shell catalyst by direct growth of 27 wt% HZSM-5 on a 3D microfibrous structure using 20 μm SS fibers, demonstrating dramatic selectivity and stability improvement in the MTP process. The unprecedented performance is due to the promotion of the olefin methylation/cracking cycle in methanol-to-hydrocarbon catalysis.