Membranes for zinc-air batteries: Recent progress, challenges and perspectives

Tsehaye, Misgina Tilahun; Alloin, Fannie; Iojoiu, Cristina; Tufa, Ramato Ashu; Aili, David; Fischer, P.; Велизаров, Светлозар

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2020.228689

Cited by 66 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 185 publications

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“…Compared to other cation exchange membranes, Nafion exhibits greater swelling in aqueous media, allowing permeation of hydroxide through the hydrophilic phase of the material, especially at high ionic strength as used here. [ 25,32–34 ] However, the benefit of the thin Nafion coating is evident from our zincate screening experiments, where all the commercial separators (including bulk Nafion) show some zincate crossover within 60 min (Figure 2b and Table 1). Conversely, testing on NC‐Celgard continued for 25 d without zincate concentration reaching the limit of detection for the method (≈0.024 × 10 −3 m ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

High Depth‐of‐Discharge Zinc Rechargeability Enabled by a Self‐Assembled Polymeric Coating

Arnot

Lim

Bell

et al. 2021

Advanced Energy Materials

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Zinc has the potential for widespread use as an environmentally friendly and cost‐effective anode material pending the resolution of rechargeability issues caused by active material loss and shape change. Here, a self‐assembled Nafion‐coated Celgard 3501 (NC‐Celgard) separator is shown to enable unprecedented cycle life of a Zn anode in alkaline electrolyte at high depth‐of‐discharge (DODZn). Using commercially relevant energy‐dense electrodes with high areal capacities of 60 mAh cm–2, Zn–Ni cells tested at 20% DODZn cells achieve over 200 cycles while 50% DODZn cells achieve over 100 cycles before failure. The 20% and 50% DOD cells deliver an average of 132 and 180 Wh L–1 per cycle over their lifetime respectively. Rechargeability is attributed to the highly selective diffusion properties of the 300 nm thick negatively charged Nafion coating on the separator which prevents shorting by dendrites and inhibits redistribution of the active material. Crossover experiments show that the NC‐Celgard separator is practically impermeable to zincate ([Zn(OH)4]2–), outperforming commercial Celgard, cellophane, Nafion 211 and 212 separators while still allowing hydroxide transport. This work demonstrates the efficacy of selective separators for increasing the cycle life of energy‐dense Zn electrodes without adding significant volume or complexity to the system.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

High Depth‐of‐Discharge Zinc Rechargeability Enabled by a Self‐Assembled Polymeric Coating

Arnot

Lim

Bell

et al. 2021

Advanced Energy Materials

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“…The strategy followed to minimize the crossover of Zn(OH) 4 2− ions in this work is discussed in Section 3.2 . Other membrane synthesis and modification strategies have been discussed in our recent review paper on the state-of-the-art membrane studies for Zn–air batteries [ 28 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, some issues, such as full utilization of the Zn particles in the electrochemical reaction, blockage of the Zn particles in the electrode [ 9 ], integral battery configuration [ 26 ] and appropriate membrane development [ 27 , 28 ] have been impeding the development and commercialization of rechargeable Zn slurry–air flow batteries.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pristine and Modified Porous Membranes for Zinc Slurry–Air Flow Battery

et al. 2021

Self Cite

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The membrane is a crucial component of Zn slurry–air flow battery since it provides ionic conductivity between the electrodes while avoiding the mixing of the two compartments. Herein, six commercial membranes (Cellophane™ 350PØØ, Zirfon®, Fumatech® PBI, Celgard® 3501, 3401 and 5550) were first characterized in terms of electrolyte uptake, ion conductivity and zincate ion crossover, and tested in Zn slurry–air flow battery. The peak power density of the battery employing the membranes was found to depend on the in-situ cell resistance. Among them, the cell using Celgard® 3501 membrane, with in-situ area resistance of 2 Ω cm2 at room temperature displayed the highest peak power density (90 mW cm−2). However, due to the porous nature of most of these membranes, a significant crossover of zincate ions was observed. To address this issue, an ion-selective ionomer containing modified poly(phenylene oxide) (PPO) and N-spirocyclic quaternary ammonium monomer was coated on a Celgard® 3501 membrane and crosslinked via UV irradiation (PPO-3.45 + 3501). Moreover, commercial FAA-3 solutions (FAA, Fumatech) were coated for comparison purpose. The successful impregnation of the membrane with the anion-exchange polymers was confirmed by SEM, FTIR and Hg porosimetry. The PPO-3.45 + 3501 membrane exhibited 18 times lower zincate ions crossover compared to that of the pristine membrane (5.2 × 10−13 vs. 9.2 × 10−12 m2 s−1). With low zincate ions crossover and a peak power density of 66 mW cm−2, the prepared membrane is a suitable candidate for rechargeable Zn slurry–air flow batteries.

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“…Similarly, the active materials used in the CT cells of Figure 5 were of the same batch. Commercial separators were supplied by Riot Energy Inc.: 1) Flexible Alkaline Separator film that was used as the anode separator, consisting of a microporous polyolefin film with an inorganic filler, [ 55 ] 2) a cellophane‐based film (Innovia Films Company) that was used to help block silver migration, [ 56,57 ] and 3) a microporous EVOH film to separate the cellophane separator from the cathode. The order of layers for the in situ cells is outlined in Figure 1d.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating Degradation Modes in Zn‐AgO Aqueous Batteries with In Situ X‐Ray Micro Computed Tomography

Scharf

Yin

Redquest

et al. 2021

Advanced Energy Materials

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To meet growing energy demands, degradation mechanisms of energy storage devices must be better understood. As a non‐destructive tool, X‐ray Computed Tomography (CT) has been increasingly used by the battery community to perform in situ experiments that can investigate dynamic phenomena. However, few have used X‐ray CT to study representative battery systems over long cycle lifetimes (>100 cycles). Here, the in situ CT study of Zn–Ag batteries is reported and the effects of current collector parasitic gassing over long‐term storage and cycling are demonstrated. Performance representative in situ CT cells are designed that can achieve >250 cycles at a high areal capacity of 12.5 mAh cm−2. Combined with electrochemical experiments, the effects of current collector parasitic gassing are revealed with micro‐scale CT. The volume expansion and evolution of ZnO and Zn depletion are quantified with cycling and elevated temperature testing. The experimental insights are utilized to develop larger form‐factor (4 cm2) cells with electrochemically compatible current collectors. With this, over 500 cycles at a high capacity of 12.5 mAh cm−2 for a 4 cm2 form‐factor are demonstrated. This work demonstrates that in situ X‐ray CT used in long cycle‐lifetime studies can be applied to examine a multitude of battery chemistries to improve performances.

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Membranes for zinc-air batteries: Recent progress, challenges and perspectives

Cited by 66 publications

References 185 publications

High Depth‐of‐Discharge Zinc Rechargeability Enabled by a Self‐Assembled Polymeric Coating

High Depth‐of‐Discharge Zinc Rechargeability Enabled by a Self‐Assembled Polymeric Coating

Pristine and Modified Porous Membranes for Zinc Slurry–Air Flow Battery

Investigating Degradation Modes in Zn‐AgO Aqueous Batteries with In Situ X‐Ray Micro Computed Tomography

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