Electropolymerization of 1,5-naphthalenediamine monomers and redox activity in aqueous zinc batteries

More organic molecules have been found to be applicable to zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs). The active monomers usually need a beforehand polymerization to overcome dissolution. In this work, organic 1,5-naphthalenediamine (1,5-NAPD) monomers were used directly as cathode material and electropolymerized by the first oxidation in Zn-ion batteries (ZIBs). Fourier-transform infrared spectra confirmed the polymerization and the most likely polymerization pattern of conformational isomerism was proposed. Scanning electron microscopy reveals the agglomeration occurs among adjacent particles in electrode. The electropolymerization of monomers eliminates beforehand polymerization steps. The initial discharge capacity achieves 134 mAh g-1 at 0.05 A g-1 without obvious capacity decay after 1000 cycles at different rates.

Automated summary

In this study, organic 1,5-naphthalenediamine (1,5-NAPD) monomers were directly used as cathode material in zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) and electropolymerized without the need for prior polymerization steps. The synthesized polymer showed stable performance with excellent cycling life and low capacity decay after 1000 cycles at different rates.