An in situ self-assembled 3D zincophilic heterogeneous metal layer on a zinc metal surface for dendrite-free aqueous zinc-ion batteries. Issue 22 (26th October 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhang, Zhuchan; Wang, Ruxing; Hu, Jianwei; Li, Mengjun; Wang, Kangli; Jiang, Kai
• Is Part Of: Sustainable energy & fuels. Volume 5:Issue 22(2021)
• Page Start: 5843
• Page End: 5850
• Publication Date: 2021-10-26
• Subjects: Renewable energy sources -- Periodicals; Fuel cells -- Periodicals; Electric batteries -- Periodicals; Electrochemistry -- Periodicals; 660.297
• DOI: 10.1039/d1se01317c
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2398-4902

Abstract

Abstract : A 3D zincophilic heterogeneous metal layer was formed in situ on a zinc metal surface by a simple chemical reaction, which guides the plating/stripping of Zn 2+ ions, reduces the volume change, and inhibits the growth of zinc dendrites. Abstract : Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are extremely promising for large-scale energy storage equipment owing to their low cost, high capacity, and safety. However, severe dendrite growth during repeated plating/stripping processes restricts their further development. Herein, a 3D heterogeneous metal protective layer is formed on the Zn surface through a self-assembly chemical reaction. The in situ formed heterogeneous metal layer (HML) possesses a large specific surface area and plenty of micropores, which can not only alleviate the volume expansion during cycles, but also can ensure excellent Zn 2+ ion transfer and regulate the uniform stripping/plating of Zn 2+ ions. More importantly, the Zn/Sn layer with high conductivity and strong zincophilic can further reduce the nucleation barrier, inhibit dendrite formation, and decrease hydrogen evolution. As a result, Zn/Sn symmetric cells exhibit a long life of more than 900 h at 1 mA h cm −1 with low voltage polarization. More impressively, Zn/Sn-CaV6 O16 ·3H2 O full cells demonstrate significantly enhanced cycle stability (800 cycles without capacity attenuation), which is much better than that of bare zinc. This facile and scalable strategy provides a universal design for dendrite-free zinc anodes.