Balanced Water Activity and Enhanced Cation Transport via a Critical Nanoconfined Electrolyte for High-Performance Ah-Level Zn-Ion Batteries.

Ma, Teng; Sun, Peiyan; Zhao, Hainan; Wu, Mengqi; Li, Junpeng; Zhao, Chunyu; Shi, Xuejian; Wang, Ying et al. · Nano Lett · 2026

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

The development of aqueous zinc-ion batteries is primarily constrained by the inherent trade-off between suppressing water-induced side reactions and maintaining fast ion transport in the conventional electrolytes. Here, we report a critical nanoconfined electrolyte (CNCE) constructed with the block copolymer surfactant P123 to resolve the dilemma. Experiments and simulations show that CNCE effectively suppresses hydrogen evolution and zinc corrosion and promotes preferential Zn(002)-plane deposition, leading to uniform, dendrite-free Zn morphology. Consequently, CNCE enables prolonged cycling and high Coulombic efficiency for Zn anodes. When paired with a V<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> cathode, CNCE significantly inhibits cathode dissolution, resulting in full cells with an outstanding cycling stability and improved resistance to self-discharge. An Ah-level Zn∥V<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> pouch cell demonstrates a remarkable cycle life, highlighting the practical potential of this electrolyte design strategy.