Basics and Advances of Manganese‐Based Cathode Materials for Aqueous Zinc‐Ion Batteries

Abstract

It is greatly crucial to develop low‐cost energy storage candidates with high safety and stability to replace alkali metal systems for a sustainable future. Recently, aqueous zinc‐ion batteries (ZIBs) have received tremendous interest owing to their low cost, high safety, wide oxidation states, and sophisticated fabrication process. Nanostructured manganese (Mn)‐based oxides in different polymorphs are the potential cathode materials for the widespread application of ZIBs. However, Mn‐based oxide materials suffer from several drawbacks, such as low electronic/ionic conductivity and poor cycling performance. To overcome these issues, various structural modification strategies have been adopted to enhance their electrochemical activity, including phase/defect engineering, doping with foreign atoms (e.g., metal and/or nonmetal atoms), and coupling with carbon materials or conducting polymers. Herein, this review targets to summarize the advantages and disadvantages of the above‐mentioned strategies to improve the electrochemical performance of the cathodic part of ZIBs. The challenges and suggestions for the development of manganese oxides for ZIBs are put forward.