Search

The inhomogeneous plating/stripping of Zn anode, attributed to dendrite growth and parasitic reactions at the electrode/electrolyte interface, severely restricts its cycling life‐span. Here, trace zwitterions (trifluoroacetate pyridine, TFAPD) are introduced into the aqueous electrolyte to construct a multifunctional interface that enhances the reversibility of Zn anode. The TFA− anions with strong specific adsorption adhere onto the Zn surface to reconstruct the inner Helmholtz plane (IHP), preventing the hydrogen evolution and corrosion side reactions caused by free H2O. The Py+ cations accumulate on the outer Helmholtz plane (OHP) of Zn anode with the force of electric field during Zn2+ plating, forming a shielding layer to uniformize the deposition of Zn2+. Besides, the adsorbed TFA− and Py+ promote the desolvation process of Zn2+ resulting in fast reaction kinetics. Thus, the Zn||Zn cells present an outstanding cycling performance of more than 10000 hours. And even at 85 % utilization rate of Zn, it can stably cycle for over 200 hours at 10 mA cm−2 and 10 mAh cm−2. The Zn||I2 full cell exhibits a capacity retention of over 95 % even after 30000 cycles. Remarkably, the Zn||I2 pouch cells (95 mAh) deliver a high‐capacity retention of 99 % after 750 cycles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catalytic process of Li2S formation is considered a key pathway to enhance the kinetics of lithium‐sulfur batteries. Due to the system's complexity, the catalytic behavior is uncertain, posing significant challenges for predicting activity. Herein, we report a novel cascaded dual‐cavity nanoreactor (NiCo−B) by controlling reaction kinetics, providing an opportunity for achieving hierarchical catalytic behavior. Through experimental and theoretical analysis, the multilevel structure can effectively suppress polysulfides dissolution and accelerate sulfur conversion. Furthermore, we differentiate the adsorption (B−S) and catalytic effect (Co−S) in NiCo−B, avoiding catalyst deactivation caused by excessive adsorption. As a result, the as‐prepared battery displays high reversible capacity, even with sulfur loading of 13.2 mg cm−2 (E/S=4 μl mg−1), the areal capacity can reach 18.7 mAh cm−2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anionic chemistry modulation represents a promising avenue to enhance the electrochemical performance and unlock versatile applications in cutting‐edge energy storage devices. Herein, we propose a methodology that involves anionic chemistry of carbonate anions to tailor the electrochemical oxidation‐reduction reactions of bismuth (Bi) electrodes, where the conversion energy barrier for Bi (0) to Bi (III) has been significantly reduced, endowing anionic full batteries with enhanced electrochemical kinetics and chemical self‐charging property. The elaborately designed batteries with an air‐switch demonstrate rapid self‐recharging capabilities, recovering over 80 % of the electrochemical full charging capacity within a remarkably short timeframe of 1 hour and achieving a cumulative self‐charging capacity of 5 Ah g−1. The aqueous self‐charging battery strategy induced by carbonate anion, as proposed in this study, holds the potential for extending to various anionic systems, including seawater‐based Cl− ion batteries. This work offers a universal framework for advancing next‐generation multi‐functional power sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High‐temperature aqueous zinc batteries have recently garnered significant attention for large‐scale energy storage. However, spontaneous hydrogen evolution and passivation on the Zn metal anode severely affect its cycling stability under elevated temperature conditions. Herein, a facile strategy is employed to construct a bifunctional composite protective layer comprising an insulating ZnF2 layer combined with Zn affinity conductive tin (Sn) metal. This combination optimally distributes Zn ions (Zn2+) and maintains consistent thermal field distribution around Zn anodes. Moreover, the presence of fluorides on the interface efficiently suppresses the hydrogen evolution reaction, while the Sn metal serves as nucleation seeds with reversible alloying and dealloying process to endow dendrite‐free morphology and fast reaction kinetics. Specifically, the symmetric cell with the coated electrode exhibits excellent stability at a current density of 3 mA cm−2 over 420 h at 50 °C. When coupled with the modified Zn anode and I2 cathode, the Zn//I2 full cells deliver high areal capacity and substantiate their practical application, exhibiting remarkable high‐temperature resilience over 2000 cycles with 97.8% capacity retained at 50 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low capacity and poor cycle stability greatly inhibit the development of zinc‐iodine batteries. Herein, a high‐performance Zn‐iodine battery has been reached by designing and optimizing both electrode and electrolyte. The Br− is introduced as the activator to trigger I+, and coupled with I+ forming interhalogen to stabilize I+ to achieve a four‐electron reaction, which greatly promotes the capacity. And the Ni−Fe−I LDH nanoflowers serve as the confinement host to enable the reactions of I−/I+ occurring in the layer due to the spacious and stable interlayer spacing of Ni−Fe−I LDH, which effectively suppresses the iodine‐species shuttle ensuring high cycling stability. As a result, the electrochemical performance is greatly enhanced, especially in specific capacity (as high as 350 mAh g−1 at 1 A g−1 far higher than two‐electron transfer Zn‐iodine batteries) and cycling performance (94.6 % capacity retention after 10000 cycles). This strategy provides a new way to realize high capacity and long‐term stability of Zn‐iodine batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although Zn metal has been regarded as the most promising anode for aqueous batteries, its practical application is still restricted by side reactions and dendrite growth. Herein, an in‐situ solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) film formed on the interface of electrode/electrolyte during the plating/stripping of zinc anodes by introducing trace amounts of multidentate ligand sodium diethyldithiocarbamate (DDTC) additive into 1 m ZnSO4. The synergistic effect of in‐situ solid electrolyte interphase forming and chelate effect endows Zn2+ with uniform and rapid interface‐diffusion kinetics against dendrite growth and surface side reactions. As a result, the Zn anode in 1 m ZnSO4 + DDTC electrolytes displays an ultra‐high coulombic efficiency of 99.5% and cycling stability (more than 2000 h), especially at high current density (more than 600 cycles at 40 mA cm−2). Moreover, the Zn//MnO2 full cells in the ZnSO4 + DDTC electrolyte exhibit outstanding cyclic stability (with 98.6% capacity retention after 2000 cycles at 10 C). This electrode/electrolyte interfacial chemistry modulated strategy provides new insight into enhancing zinc anode stability for high‐performance aqueous zinc batteries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flexible aqueous zinc batteries (FAZBs) with high safety and environmental friendliness are promising smart power sources for smart wearable electronics. However, the bare zinc anode usually suffers from damnable dendrite growth and rampant side reaction on the surface, greatly impeding practical applications in FAZBs. Herein, a composite polymer interface layer is artificially self‐assembled on the surface of the zinc anode by graft‐modified fluorinated monomer (polyacrylic acid‐2‐(Trifluoromethyl)propenoic acid, PAA‐TFPA), on which an organic–inorganic hybrid (PAA‐Zn/ZnF2) solid electrolyte interface (SEI) with excellent ionic conductivity is formed by interacting with Zn2+. Both the pouch cell and fiber zinc anode exhibit excellent plating/stripping reversibility after protecting by this organic–inorganic SEI, which can be stably cycled more than 3000 h in symmetric Zn||Zn cells or 550 h in fiber Zn||Zn cells. Additionally, this interface layer preserves zinc anode with excellent mechanical durability under various mechanical deformation (stably working for another 1200 h after bending 100 h). The corresponding PAA‐Zn/ZnF2@Zn||MnO2 full cell displays an ultra‐long life span (79% capacity retention after 3000 cycles) and mechanical robustness (85% of the initial capacity for another 3000 cycles after bending 100 times). More importantly, the as‐assembled cells can easily power smart wearable devices to monitor the user's health condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]