Highly Reversible and Anticorrosive Zn Anode Enabled by a Ag Nanowires Layer

With the fast development of large-scale energy storage, aqueous Zn-based rechargeable batteries have attracted more and more attention because of their high-level safety, low cost, and environmental friendliness. The Zn metal anode is fascinating for aqueous Zn-based rechargeable batteries due to its high volume-specific capacity (5855 mA h cm(-3)), low negative potential (-0.762 V vs standard hydrogen electrode), and abundant resources. However, the practical application of the Zn metal anode is hindered by the challenge of serious dendrite growth. To address this, herein, we report a highly reversible and anticorrosive Zn anode enabled by a Ag nanowires (AgNWs) layer. By effectively lowering the nucleation overpotential and providing a high specific surface area to construct abundant sites inducing Zn uniform deposition, the designed Zn-AgNWs anode could ensure dendrite-free deposition to improve the reversibility (600 h at 2 mA h cm(-2)). During cycling, Zn deposition on the AgNWs surface drives the in situ formation of the AgZn3 alloy to constitute a natural protective layer, which can prevent the direct corrosion reaction between Zn and the electrolyte. Thus, the Zn-AgNWs vertical bar MnO2 full cell exhibits excellent electrochemical performance with large specific capacity and outstanding rate capabil(i)ty and retains a high capacity retention at 0.6 A g(-1) even after 800 cycles.

Automated summary

With the development of large-scale energy storage, aqueous Zn-based rechargeable batteries are gaining more attention due to their safety, low cost, and environmental friendliness. However, the practical application of Zn metal anode is hindered by dendrite growth. In this study, a highly reversible and anticorrosive Zn anode enabled by a Ag nanowires layer is reported. The Zn-AgNWs anode ensures dendrite-free deposition and prevents corrosion, resulting in excellent electrochemical performance.