Regulating the Water Molecular in the Solvation Structure for Stable Zinc Metal Batteries

Rechargeable aqueous zinc batteries are promising energy storage devices because of their low cost, high safety, and high energy density. However, their performance is plagued by the unsatisfied cyclability due to the dendrite growth and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) at the Zn anode. Herein, it is demonstrated that the concentrated hybrid aqueous/non-aqueous ZnCl2 electrolytes constitute a peculiar chemical environment for not only the Zn-ions but also water molecules. The high concentration of chloride ions substitutes the H2O molecular in the solvation structure of Zn2+, while the acetonitrile further interacts with H2O to decrease its activity. The hybrid electrolytes both inhibit the dendrite formation and HER, enabling an ultrahigh average Coulombic efficiency of 99.9% in the Zn||Cu half-cell and a highly reversible Zn plating/stripping with a low overpotential of 21 mV. Using this hybrid electrolyte, the Zn||polytriphenylamine (PTPAn) full cell deliveres a high discharge capacity of 110 mAh g(-1), a high power density of 9200 W kg(-1) at 100 degrees C and maintains 85% of the capacity for over 6000 cycles at 10 degrees C. This study provides a deep understanding between the solvation structure and columbic efficiency of Zn anode, thus inspiring the development for stable Zn batteries.