Electrolyte design for reversible zinc metal chemistry.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 39747912.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-024-55657-1 and PMC identifier 11695615.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
Metal anodes hold significant promise for next-generation energy storage, yet achieving highly reversible plating/stripping remains challenging due to dendrite formation and side reactions. Here we present a tailored electrolyte design to surpass 99.9% Coulombic efficiency (CE) in zinc metal anodes by co-engineering salts and solvents to address two critical factors: plating morphology and the anode-electrolyte interface. By integrating a dual-salt approach and organic co-solvent design, these issues can be effectively addressed. The resulting hybrid dual-salt electrolyte renders CE of 99.95% at 1 mA cm<sup>-2</sup> at a medium concentration (3.5 m). Building upon the near-unity CE, an anode-free cell with ZnI<sub>2</sub> cathode can stably run more than 1000 cycles under practical conditions with minimal capacity loss. Our findings provide a promising pathway for the design of reversible metal anodes, advancing metal-based battery technologies for broader energy storage applications.