Citation: Jiao Wang, Shuang-Yan Lang, Zhen-Zhen Shen, Gui-Xian Liu, Rui Wen. In situ nanoscale insights into the interfacial degradation of Zn metal anodes[J]. Chinese Chemical Letters, ;2025, 36(8): 110308. doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2024.110308 shu

In situ nanoscale insights into the interfacial degradation of Zn metal anodes

Jiao Wang ^{a, b} ,
Shuang-Yan Lang ^{a, b} ,
Zhen-Zhen Shen ^{a, b} ,
Gui-Xian Liu ^{a, b} ,
Rui Wen ^{a, b, *,}

a.
CAS Key Laboratory of Molecular Nanostructure and Nanotechnology, Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, CAS Research/Education Center for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
b.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

ruiwen@iccas.ac.cn

Received Date: 19 June 2024
Revised Date: 15 July 2024
Accepted Date: 30 July 2024
Available Online: 31 July 2024

Figures(5)

Zn metal batteries are highly attractive because of their high theoretical specific capacity, intrinsic safety and resource availability. However, further development is significantly hindered by low Coulomb efficiency, which is closely linked to reaction processes occurring at electrode/electrolyte interfaces. Herein, we have achieved a real-time visualization and comprehensive analysis of the interfacial evolution of Zn metal anode via in situ AFM in organic and aqueous electrolytes, respectively. The processes of uneven nucleation, dendrite growth, the ZnO formation and the dissolution of Zn substrate are directly probed in aqueous electrolyte, which induces interfacial deterioration and ultimately results in battery failure. In organic electrolyte, the in situ observations show that the homogeneous nuclei form on the Zn surface to induce the dendrite-free deposition, however, exhibiting poor Zn plating/stripping reversibility. This work delves into the dynamic evolution and electrochemical behaviors regulated by solvents, which provides in-depth understanding of structure-reactivity correlations and further interfacial engineering.
- In situ AFM,
- Interfacial processes,
- Degradation mechanism,
- Organic electrolyte,
- Zn metal batteries
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