Solid‐Adsorbed Polymer‐Electrolyte Interphases for Stabilizing Metal Anodes in Aqueous Zn and Non‐Aqueous Li Batteries

• Published in: Angewandte Chemie Vol. 135; no. 18
• Main Authors: Jin, Shuo, Deng, Yue, Chen, Pengyu, Hong, Shifeng, Garcia‐Mendez, Regina, Sharma, Arpita, Utomo, Nyalaliska W., Shao, Yiqi, Yang, Rong, Archer, Lynden A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 24-04-2023; Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
• Subjects: Adsorbed Polymer Interphases; Aqueous Zn Battery; Batteries; Chemistry; Conformation; Durability; Electrochemistry; Electrolytes; Energy resources; Energy storage; Li Metal Battery; Molecular weight; Polyethylene glycol; Polymer-Induced Organic/Inorganic SEI; Polymers; Substrates; Transport properties; Zinc
• ISSN: 0044-8249; 1521-3757
• DOI: 10.1002/ange.202300823

Polymers are known to adsorb spontaneously from liquid solutions in contact with high‐energy substrates to form configurationally complex, but robust phases that often exhibit higher durability than might be expected from the individual physical bonds formed with the substrate. Rational control of the physical, chemical, and transport properties of such interphases has emerged as a fundamental opportunity for scientific and technological advances in energy storage technology but requires in‐depth understanding of the conformation states and electrochemical effect of the adsorbed polymers. Here, we analyze the interfacial adsorption of oligomeric polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains of moderate sizes dissolved in protic and aprotic liquid electrolytes and find that there is an optimum polymer molecular weight of approximately 400 Da at which the highest columbic efficiency is achieved for both Zn and Li deposition. These findings point to a simple, versatile approach for extending the lifetime of batteries.
The optimized PEG adsorption interphases realize highly reversible Zn/Li anodes. The organic/inorganic SEI layer induced by the adsorbed PEG interphases plays a key role in the stability of the metal anode and the low N/P ratio full cells.