Interfacial Engineering of Polymer Membranes with Intrinsic Microporosity for Dendrite-Free Zinc Metal Batteries

Rui Tan*, Hongzhen He, Anqi Wang, Toby Wong, Yilin Yang, Sunshine Iguodala, Chunchun Ye, Dezhi Liu, Zhiyu Fan, Mate Furedi, Guanjie He, Stefan Guldin, Dan J.L. Brett, Neil B. McKeown, Qilei Song*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

Metallic zinc has emerged as a promising anode material for high-energy battery systems due to its high theoretical capacity (820 mAh g−1), low redox potential for two-electron reactions, cost-effectiveness and inherent safety. However, current zinc metal batteries face challenges in low coulombic efficiency and limited longevity due to uncontrollable dendrite growth, the corrosive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and decomposition of the aqueous ZnSO4 electrolyte. Here, we report an interfacial-engineering approach to mitigate dendrite growth and reduce corrosive reactions through the design of ultrathin selective membranes coated on the zinc anodes. The submicron-thick membranes derived from polymers of intrinsic microporosity (PIMs), featuring pores with tunable interconnectivity, facilitate regulated transport of Zn2+-ions, thereby promoting a uniform plating/stripping process. Benefiting from the protection by PIM membranes, zinc symmetric cells deliver a stable cycling performance over 1500 h at 1 mA/cm2 with a capacity of 0.5 mAh while full cells with NaMnO2 cathode operate stably at 1 A g−1 over 300 cycles without capacity decay. Our work represents a new strategy of preparing multi-functional membranes that can advance the development of safe and stable zinc metal batteries.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article numbere202409322
JournalAngewandte Chemie - International Edition
Volume63
Issue number49
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2 2024

Keywords

  • Coating
  • Energy storage
  • Ion-selective membranes
  • Polymers of intrinsic microporosity
  • Zinc metal batteries

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Catalysis
  • General Chemistry

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