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The zinc‐ion battery (ZIB) is considered as one of the most important alternative battery chemistries to date. However, one of the challenges in ZIB development is the limited selection of materials that can exhibit satisfactory Zn2+ storage. Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are widely investigated in energy‐related applications due to their distinct physical and chemical properties. In particular, the wide interlayer spacings for these TMDs are particularly attractive as viable Zn2+ storage sites. Despite the suitability of TMDs in ZIB application, they are still not widely explored due to their limited report in this area. In this perspective review, the key challenge of TMDs, especially for MoS2, in their utilization as ZIB cathode are discussed. The various reports on MoS2 and TMDs as ZIB cathodes are also summarized. In order to elicit reasonable Zn2+ storage ability in MoS2 and TMDs, four key modification strategies are proposed: 1) interlayer engineering, 2) defect engineering, 3) hybridization, and 4) phase engineering. These proposed modification strategies may be able to address the challenge of inadequate Zn2+ storage in MoS2 and TMDs. Finally, this review ends with a conclusion and outlook of MoS2 and TMDs in the future development of ZIB cathodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of advanced cathode materials for aqueous the zinc ion battery (ZIB) represents a crucial step toward building future large‐scale green energy conversion and storage systems. Recently, significant progress has been achieved in the development of manganese‐based oxides for ZIB via defect engineering, whereby the intrinsic capacity and energy density have been enhanced. In this review, an overview of the recent progress in the defect engineering of manganese‐based oxides for aqueous ZIBs is summarized in the following order: 1) the structures and properties of the commonly used manganese‐based oxides, 2) the classification of the various types of defect engineering commonly reported, 3) the various strategies used to create defects in materials, and 4) the effects of the various types of defect engineering on the electrochemical performance of manganese‐based oxides. Finally, a perspective on the defect engineering of manganese‐based oxides is proposed to further enhance their electrochemical performance as a ZIB cathode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development and commercialisation of Zinc‐Ion Batteries (ZIBs) faces a daunting challenge caused by the limited selection of cathode materials. Among all the available choices, Manganese‐Based Oxides show the most promising potential due to the various benefits such as, low costs, natural abundance of Manganese, environmental benignity and its multiple valence states. Most notably, Manganese Dioxide (MnO2) as a cathode material for ZIBs has always been a popular area of research as it can exist in various phases with tunnelled and layered structures for the (de‐)intercalation of Zn2+ ions. However, despite many works reported on enhancing the electrochemical performances of MnO2, most of the proposed methodologies of improving the performance is based on Zn2+ ion insertion kinetics and these methods has been pushed to saturation. Herein, we propose an alternative direction of creating oxygen deficiency via defect engineering to enhance the surface‐capacitive electrochemical performance of MnO2. In this work, the Zn//Oxygen‐deficient Birnessite‐MnO2 achieved a specific capacity of 378 mAh g−1 which is one of the highest among other existing Zn//Birnessite‐MnO2 battery systems. Thus, this work is expected to shine light on the potential of defect engineering as a strategy to enhance electrochemical performances of MnO2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: Bi2S3 is proposed as a promising cathode material for rechargeable aqueous Zn ion battery. The Zn/Bi2S3 battery shows a reversible capacity of 161 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 and good cyclic stability of up to 100 cycles with ca. 100% retention. The storage mechanism in the Bi2S3 cathode is related to the reversible Zn ion intercalation/extraction reactions and the capacitive contribution. Aqueous Zn ion batteries (ZIBs) are promising in energy storage due to the low cost, high safety, and material abundance. The development of metal oxides as the cathode for ZIBs is limited by the strong electrostatic forces between O2− and Zn2+ which leads to poor cyclic stability. Herein, Bi2S3 is proposed as a promising cathode material for rechargeable aqueous ZIBs. Improved cyclic stability and fast diffusion of Zn2+ is observed. Also, the layered structure of Bi2S3 with the weak van der Waals interaction between layers offers paths for diffusion and occupancy of Zn2+. As a result, the Zn/Bi2S3 battery delivers high capacity of 161 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 and good cycling stability up to 100 cycles with ca. 100% retention. The battery also demonstrates good cyclic performance of ca. 80.3% over 2000 cycles at 1 A g−1. The storage mechanism in the Bi2S3 cathode is related to the reversible Zn ion intercalation/extraction reactions and the capacitive contribution. This work indicates that Bi2S3 shows great potential as the cathode of ZIBs with good performance and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• In the present work, oxygen vacancies are introduced into V 2 O 5 lattice for high performing aqueous zinc-ion battery. • The battery reaches an ultra-long cyclic duration of 620 h at 0.2 A g−1 without any significant capacity fading. • The oxygen-deficient V 2 O 5 possesses significantly higher specific capacity and better cyclic stability than pristine V 2 O 5. [Display omitted] Rechargeable aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have attracted considerable attention for large-scale energy storage systems due to their high energy density, low cost, and inherent safety. However, ZIBs suffer from limited cyclic stability with the use of the current cathode materials (such as V 2 O 5) due to the strong electrostatic ion–lattice interactions with the diffusing divalent Zn2+, usually leading to a limited cyclic duration (<400 h). Herein, oxygen vacancies are introduced into V 2 O 5 lattice to promote Zn2+ diffusion kinetic, thus enhancing the storage capacity and Zn2+ (de)intercalation processes, so as to high reversibility. In this work, the oxygen-deficient V 2 O 5 displays improvements in electrochemical performances over the pristine V 2 O 5. The as-assembled Zn//oxygen-deficient V 2 O 5 battery shows an impressive stability of 90% capacity retention over 1000 cycles as compared to Zn//pristine V 2 O 5 with 59% capacity retention over 680 cycles at a current density of 2 A g−1. It is also able to attain a high reversible specific capacity of approximately 406 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1, which is 33% higher as compared to the capacity of pristine V 2 O 5 (307 mAh g−1). More importantly, the Zn//oxygen-deficient V 2 O 5 battery reaches an ultra-long cyclic duration of 620 h at 0.2 A g−1 without any significant capacity fading, which is, to the best of our knowledge, one of the best cyclic performance reported for V 2 O 5 system. Thus, based on these encouraging results, harnessing oxygen vacancies in V 2 O 5 may help to further enhance the electrochemical performance of the cathodes towards high performing ZIBs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: Bi2S3 is proposed as a promising cathode material for rechargeable aqueous Zn ion battery. The Zn/Bi2S3 battery shows a reversible capacity of 161 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 and good cyclic stability of up to 100 cycles with ca. 100% retention. The storage mechanism in the Bi2S3 cathode is related to the reversible Zn ion intercalation/extraction reactions and the capacitive contribution. Aqueous Zn ion batteries (ZIBs) are promising in energy storage due to the low cost, high safety, and material abundance. The development of metal oxides as the cathode for ZIBs is limited by the strong electrostatic forces between O2− and Zn2+ which leads to poor cyclic stability. Herein, Bi2S3 is proposed as a promising cathode material for rechargeable aqueous ZIBs. Improved cyclic stability and fast diffusion of Zn2+ is observed. Also, the layered structure of Bi2S3 with the weak van der Waals interaction between layers offers paths for diffusion and occupancy of Zn2+. As a result, the Zn/Bi2S3 battery delivers high capacity of 161 mAh g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 and good cycling stability up to 100 cycles with ca. 100% retention. The battery also demonstrates good cyclic performance of ca. 80.3% over 2000 cycles at 1 A g−1. The storage mechanism in the Bi2S3 cathode is related to the reversible Zn ion intercalation/extraction reactions and the capacitive contribution. This work indicates that Bi2S3 shows great potential as the cathode of ZIBs with good performance and stability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]