Polypyrrole-controlled plating/stripping for advanced zinc metal anodes. (September 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhang, Feng; Wang, Chenggang; Pan, Jun; Tian, Fang; Zeng, Suyuan; Yang, Jian; Qian, Yitai
• Is Part Of: Materials today energy. Volume 17(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Subjects: Zn -- Conductive polymer -- Controllable growth -- Anodes -- Batteries; Energy development -- Periodicals; Energy industries -- Periodicals; Power resources -- Periodicals; Energy policy -- Periodicals; Energy development; Energy industries; Energy policy; Power resources; Electronic journals; Periodicals; 621.042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.mtener.2020.100443
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2468-6069

Abstract

Abstract: Zinc metal as anodes has been widely used for electrochemical energy storage devices using aqueous electrolytes, due to its cost effective, eco-friendliness, as well as low redox potential in aqueous solutions. However, Zn prefers to grow into plate-like structures that vertically stand on current collectors. They protrude toward separators or break during cycles, thereby provoking internal short circuit and/or poor cycling stability. Here, polypyrrole is exploited to manipulate the nucleation/growth of zinc via the interaction between –NH and Zn 2+ . The resultant Zn microplates grow nearly parallel to the current collector, effectively avoiding the negative effects. The performances of PPy-coated Zn as the anode are greatly improved, as demonstrated in symmetric PPy-coated Zn//PPy-coated Zn, PPy-coated Zn//active carbon and PPy-coated Zn//δ-MnO2 . Especially for PPy-coated Zn//active carbon, it can stably run at 5 A g −1 for 12, 000 cycles with a capacity retention of 96%. The results indicate the promising potential of conductive polymers in advanced zinc anodes. Graphical abstract: Zn prefers to grow into plate-like structures that vertically stand on current collectors. They protrude toward separators or break during cycles, thereby provoking internal short circuit and/or poor cycling stability. Here, polypyrrole is exploited to manipulate the nucleation/growth of zinc via the interaction between –NH and Zn 2+ . The resultant Zn microplates grow nearly parallel to the current collector, effectively avoiding the parasitic effects. Image 1 Highlights: PPy coated zinc foil was prepared by a simple surface coating method. The PPy coating can greatly improve the electrochemical performance of Zn electrode. The introduction of PPy can alter the growth manner of zinc during the charge process. This simple method open a new sight for the large-scale application of zinc electrode.