Enhanced Bifunctional Electrocatalysis for Zinc‐Air Battery Using Porous Conductive Substrate with Abundant Anchoring Sites
Jongkyoung Kim, Je Min Yu, Jun‐Yong Choi, Seong‐Hun Lee, Han Uk Lee, Dongrak Oh, Hyunju Go, Wonsik Jang, Seunghyun Lee, Jaewon Cho, Sung Beom Cho, Tae Joo Shin, Hyunjoo Lee, Sang‐Goo Lee, Ji‐Wook Jang, Seungho Cho, Wook Jo
Abstract
Abstract Efficient and robust bifunctional electrocatalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) are critical for high‐performance zinc‐air batteries (ZABs). However, balancing OER and ORR activity in a single catalyst remains challenging due to the different mechanisms during charging and discharging. Here, a scalable strategy is presented for enhancing both reactions by integrating two‐dimensional OER‐ and ORR‐active components onto a carbon‐based conductive substrate with abundant anchoring sites, via high‐shear exfoliation. The heterostructure catalyst demonstrates exceptional bifunctionality, achieving an extremely low overpotential difference of 0.63 V. First‐principles calculations confirm a strong chemical compatibility between the active components and substrate. In scaled‐up ZAB applications, the catalyst delivers a high peak power density of 1569 mW cm −2 , and an outstanding cycling stability over 300 h (1800 cycles). This work highlights a versatile approach for designing multifunctional electrocatalysts, advancing scalable energy conversion and storage technologies.