Journal
SMALL
Volume 17, Issue 39, Pages -Publisher
WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH
DOI: 10.1002/smll.202103048
Keywords
dendrite suppression; gel polymer electrolyte; nanofiber composite; water retention; zinc-air battery
Categories
Funding
- Research Grants Council of Hong Kong SAR Government [26309420]
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, HKUST
- Natural Science Foundation of Guangxi Province [RZ2000002709, RZ2000001585]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
A novel interface engineering strategy is proposed in this study to retard the water loss of GPE in ZABs, which significantly enhances the cycle life of ZAB and suppresses the growth of Zn dendrites. The use of PEVA-C nanofibers interface layer on the carbon cloth effectively improves the performance of ZAB, showing an impressive cycle life of 230 hours.
Water loss of the gel polymer electrolytes (GPEs) and dendrites growth on Zn anode are overriding obstacles to applying flexible zinc-air batteries (ZABs) for wearable electronic devices. Nearly all previous efforts aim at developing novel GPEs with enhanced water retention and therefore elongate their lifespan. Herein, a facile interface engineering strategy is proposed to retard the water loss of GPE from the half-open structured air cathode. In detail, the poly(ethylene vinyl acetate)/carbon powder (PEVA-C) nanofiber composite interface layer with features of hydrophobicity, high conductivity, air permeability, and flexibility are prepared on the carbon cloth and set up between the GPE and electrode. The as-assembled ZAB with simple alkaline PVA GPE exhibits an impressive cycle life of 230 h, which outperforms ZAB without the PEVA-C nanofibers interface layer by 14 times. Additionally, the growth of Zn dendrites can be suppressed due to the tardy water loss of GPE.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available