The
increasing demand for wearable and bendable electronics has
generated significant interest in flexible zinc-ion batteries. However,
their development has been hindered by the inadequate capacity and
cycling stability of flexible electrodes under repeated mechanical
deformation. Herein, we present a self-supported, binder-free, and
flexible manganese oxide-based cathode for flexible zinc-ion batteries.
This innovation leverages an optimum amount of well-dispersed manganese
oxide nanoparticles within a nitrogen-doped carbon nanofiber matrix,
achieved by fine-tuning the mass ratio of polyacrylonitrile and manganese
acetate during electrospinning. The optimum sample exhibits mechanical
robustness and a desirable nanofiber morphology without any bead formations.
The synergistic interfaces between manganese oxide nanoparticles and
a nitrogen-doped carbon nanofiber matrix facilitate rapid charge transfer
and minimize active material detachment, leading to an unprecedented
combination of high-rate capability and stability. Consequently, the
free-standing cathode can deliver a high specific capacity of 392
mA h g–1 at 0.1 A g–1 and maintain
stable capacity (∼200 mA h g–1) for up to
1800 cycles at a high current density of 2.0 A g–1. Furthermore, employing the obtained cathode with a quasi-solid
gel electrolyte, flexible zinc-ion batteries achieve stable performance
with a high average capacity of ∼186 mA h g–1 over 140 cycles, even under extreme bending angles of 180°.
This finding surpasses the performance of the existing flexible zinc-ion
batteries and offers a promising path for the development of advanced
energy storage solutions in flexible electronics.