Stable Zinc Anodes Enabled by a Zincophilic Polyanionic Hydrogel Layer

• Published in: Advanced materials (Weinheim) Vol. 34; no. 27; pp. e2202382 - n/a
• Main Authors: Yang, Jin‐Lin, Li, Jia, Zhao, Jian‐Wei, Liu, Kang, Yang, Peihua, Fan, Hong Jin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01-07-2022
• Subjects: Anodes; Anodic protection; aqueous Zn‐ion batteries; Chemical bonds; Coupling agents; Dendritic structure; Functional groups; Hydrogels; Hydrogen evolution reactions; Materials science; polyanionic hydrogels; Sulfur trioxide; suppression of dendrites; Zinc; Zn electrodeposition; Zn‐metal anodes; Zn electrodeposition; suppression of dendrites; Zn-metal anodes; polyanionic hydrogels; aqueous Zn-ion batteries
• ISSN: 0935-9648; 1521-4095
• DOI: 10.1002/adma.202202382

The practical application of the Zn‐metal anode for aqueous batteries is greatly restricted by catastrophic dendrite growth, intricate hydrogen evolution, and parasitic surface passivation. Herein, a polyanionic hydrogel film is introduced as a protective layer on the Zn anode with the assistance of a silane coupling agent (denoted as Zn–SHn). The hydrogel framework with zincophilic –SO3− functional groups uniformizes the zinc ions flux and transport. Furthermore, such a hydrogel layer chemically bonded on the Zn surface possesses an anti‐catalysis effect, which effectively suppresses both the hydrogen evolution reaction and formation of Zn dendrites. As a result, stable and reversible Zn stripping/plating at various currents and capacities is achieved. A full cell by pairing the Zn–SHn anode with a NaV3O8·1.5 H2O cathode shows a capacity of around 176 mAh g−1 with a retention around 67% over 4000 cycles at 10 A g−1. This polyanionic hydrogel film protection strategy paves a new way for future Zn‐anode design and safe aqueous batteries construction.
A unique polyanionic hydrogel is employed as an artificial protective layer for reversible Zn‐metal anodes. The polyanions in the hydrogel framework facilitate a homogeneous zinc‐ion flux, and the Zn–O bonding strengthens the interface and suppresses surface corrosion and irregular Zn dendrites growth. This strategy could apply also to other aqueous metal batteries.