In-situ alloying interface inducing Zn(002) texture towards stable high-utilization zinc anodes
Xiu R. Bu, Mingzhu Li, Zhexuan Liu, Shuquan Liang, Guozhao Fang
Abstract
Aqueous zinc ion batteries (AZIBs) have emerged as a promising energy storage technology due to their high safety and low cost. However, the practical application of AZIBs is severely hindered by unstable Zn anodes especially under high depth of discharge (DOD). This study proposes an in-situ interface alloying engineering based on Ce 3+ additive to regulate Zn deposition behaviors, significantly enhancing the cycling stability and reversibility of Zn anodes. Ce 3+ undergoes in-situ formation of ZnCe alloy on Zn anode interface, inducing preferential deposition of dense Zn (002) plane and effectively mitigating concentration polarization. Zn//Zn symmetric cells with Ce 3+ electrolytes achieve stable cycling for 3000 h at 1 mA cm −2 and deliver a cumulative capacity of 27 Ah cm −2 (5400 h) at a high current density of 5 mA cm −2 . Even under a high DOD of 68.4%, it maintains stable cycling for 420 h. Full cells with a low Negative/Positive capacity (N/P) ratio of 4.30 and high cathode loading of 10 mg cm −2 can stably cycle over 1000 cycles at 2 A g −1 . Furthermore, an 80 mAh-level pouch cell with N/P ratio of 4.68 retains 85% capacity after 100 cycles. This article provides new insights into the interfacial engineering for practical AZIBs. The introduction of alloy ions significantly improved the reaction kinetics and suppressed side reactions. Meanwhile, in-situ alloying interface engineering induced the formation of Zn (002) texture, thereby achieving high reversibility at high discharge depths and ultimately obtaining high-loading pouch cells.