Copper Nanoparticle-Modified Carbon Nanofiber for Seeded Zinc Deposition Enables Stable Zn Metal Anode

Abstract

Challenges with the Zn anode for aqueous zinc ion batteries have hindered their practical applications, such as uncontrollable formation of the Zn dendrite and serious side reactions. Herein, we fabricate a flexible coating layer with porous and conductive carbon networks (Cu@CNFs) by a simple electrospinning method to construct a stable Zn anode. It can uniformly distribute the charge, regulate the Zn 2+ flux, and stabilize the zinc anode. Moreover, the zincopilic Cu nanoparticles (CuNPs) in the coating layer act as nucleation seeds to facilitate the homogeneous deposition of Zn and inhibit its dendrite growth. Density functional theory calculations have further demonstrated the zincophilicity of the CuNPs seeds. As a result, the Cu@CNFs-Zn anode demonstrates a lower nucleation overpotential (58.3 mV at 5.0 mA cm −2 ) and a higher Coulombic efficiency compared with bare Zn and CNFs-Zn anodes. Remarkably, the Cu@CNFs-Zn anode can provide a stable cycle over 2200 h at 1.0 mA cm −2 with a capacity of 1.0 mAh cm −2 . Moreover, the Cu@CNFs-Zn//V 2 O 5 battery achieves a superior cyclability up to 1000 cycles at 0.5A g −1 , which is attributed to the large surface areas of CNFs and the zincophilicity of the Cu@CNFs coating.

Functional Oriented Design of Composite Artificial Interface Layers Towards Stable Zinc Anodes In Aqueous Zinc‐ion Batteries

“…According to this, CF with highly dispersed zincophilic Cu nanoparticles (CuÀ NPs) as a composite AIL was investigated to realize dendrite-free Zn anode. [60] Figure 8(B) showed the strongest adsorption of Zn(002), Zn-(100), and Zn(101) on CF compared with Cu and C, indicating a strong interaction of CNFs with Zn. The adsorption of Zn(002) to CNFs is better than that of Zn (100) and Zn(101) on CF surface.…”

“…Amorphous carbon not only has high mechanical strength, but also has superior ionic conductivity and electronic insulation properties, which is conducive to improve ionic diffusion ability and interface stability. According to this, CF with highly dispersed zincophilic Cu nanoparticles (Cu−NPs) as a composite AIL was investigated to realize dendrite‐free Zn anode [60] . Figure 8(B) showed the strongest adsorption of Zn(002), Zn(100), and Zn(101) on CF compared with Cu and C, indicating a strong interaction of CNFs with Zn.…”

“…The composite Cu‐CNFs AIL combined both advantages of protective function of CNFs and Cu. The porous CNFs with a large specific surface area reduced local current density and homogenized the distribution of electric fields while the modified Cu nanoparticles on CNFs greatly reduce the nucleation overpotential of Zn [60] . This kind of structural and zincophilic composite AILs are endowed with polyfunctionality to overcome the issues encountered by a single‐component AIL.…”

A Multifunctional Organic Electrolyte Additive for Aqueous Zinc Ion Batteries Based on Polyaniline Cathode

“…Aqueous metal ion batteries have gained great interest for largescale energy storage due to their low cost, environmental friendliness, and high safety. [1,2] Zn metal is considered the most desirable anode for aqueous metal ion batteries due to its relatively low redox potential (−0.76 V vs SHE), high natural abundance, and high theoretical capacity (820 mAh g −1 , 5855 mAh cm −3 ). [3,4] DOI: 10.1002/smll.…”

“…Aqueous metal ion batteries have gained great interest for large‐scale energy storage due to their low cost, environmental friendliness, and high safety. [ 1,2 ] Zn metal is considered the most desirable anode for aqueous metal ion batteries due to its relatively low redox potential (−0.76 V vs SHE), high natural abundance, and high theoretical capacity (820 mAh g −1 , 5855 mAh cm −3 ). [ 3,4 ] In recent years, great progress has been made in exploring suitable cathode materials, [ 5,6 ] regulating the Zn metal anode, [ 7,8 ] and electrolyte engineering [ 9,10 ] for aqueous zinc ion batteries.…”