Aqueous
electrolytes are the leading candidate to meet the surging
demand for safe and low-cost storage batteries. Aqueous electrolytes
facilitate more sustainable battery technologies due to the attributes
of being nonflammable, environmentally benign, and cost effective.
Yet, water’s narrow electrochemical stability window remains
the primary bottleneck for the development of high-energy aqueous
batteries with long cycle life and infallible safety. Water’s
electrolysis leads to either hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) or
oxygen evolution reaction (OER), which causes a series of dire consequences,
including poor Coulombic efficiency, short device longevity, and safety
issues. These are often showstoppers of a new aqueous battery technology
besides the low energy density. Prolific progress has been made in
the understanding of HER and OER from both catalysis and battery fields.
Unfortunately, a systematic review on these advances from a battery
chemistry standpoint is lacking. This review provides in-depth discussions
on the mechanisms of water electrolysis on electrodes, where we summarize
the critical influencing factors applicable for a broad spectrum of
aqueous battery systems. Recent progress and existing challenges on
suppressing water electrolysis are discussed, and our perspectives
on the future development of this field are provided.