High cycle stability of Zn anodes boosted by an artificial electronic–ionic mixed conductor coating layer

Abstract

An artificial mixed electronic–ionic conductive coating layer relieves dendrites and side effects.

. Insights into the design of mildly acidic aqueous electrolytes for improved stability of Zn anode performance in zinc-ion batteries

“…As is known, water consumption occurs not only during the Zn deposition process (2H 2 O + 2e -→ 2OH -+ H 2 ↑) but also when the battery is at rest [4] . Because Zn is an amphoteric metal, it can react with proton (H + ) (Zn + 2H 2 O → Zn(OH) 2 + H 2 ↑).…”

“…Obviously, both of the two explanations only emphasize the influence of the electrolyte local structure on HER, and it is still unclear which mechanism is in control of water activity. Very recently, Yang et al delved into the origin of HER and suggested that HER primarily originates from solvated water rather than free water [4] . They found that in ZnCl 2 electrolytes, an increase in the ZnCl 2 concentration will promote H 2 evolution.…”

“…Zinc (Zn) batteries have been regarded as one of the advanced large-energy storage systems owing to their huge natural abundance, low cost, and high theoretical capacity (820 mAh g -1 and 5,854 mAh cm -3 ) of metallic Zn [1][2][3] . In addition, compared with strongly acidic and alkaline electrolytes, using mildly acidic aqueous electrolytes (pH ranging from 3 to 7) contributes to Zn batteries with excellent environmental compatibility and inherent safety [4,5] . However, the major obstacle to the implementation of Zn batteries is the intrinsic thermodynamic instability of Zn metal anodes in mildly acidic aqueous electrolytes, which involves H 2 evolution, Zn corrosion, and dendritic growth [6][7][8][9] .…”

A glutamate anion boosted zinc anode for deep cycling aqueous zinc ion batteries

“…[10][11][12] Many efforts have thus been focused on addressing the Zn-related issues, and however, few signicant breakthroughs have been made in maintaining longterm stability at large current densities. 13,14 Recently, electrolyte engineering is one of the most attractive approaches among the strategies currently proposed to address Zn irreversibility, due to its most maneuverability during battery assembling. The electrolyte additive strategy is regarded as the lowest cost and most effective way in electrolyte engineering.…”

“…10–12 Many efforts have thus been focused on addressing the Zn-related issues, and however, few significant breakthroughs have been made in maintaining long-term stability at large current densities. 13,14…”