NSRRC Activity Report 2022

026 NSRRC ACTIVITY REPORT 2022 retention reaching 86.5% after 200 cycles. However, this ZIC with a liquid electrolyte suffered from Zn dendrite formation on the anode and deposition of Zn compounds on the cathode, leading to device failure after 200 cycles. Therefore, the NP-MWCNT@GONR was coated on the anode to inhibit Zn dendrite formation and improve the cycle stability up to 3,000 cycles. Furthermore, PVA-Zn(CF 3 SO 3 ) gel electrolytes were used to suppress Zn dendrite formation on the anode and unexpected Zn compound deposition on the cathode because of their high viscosity and relatively slow ion diffusion. The cycle life of the ZIC with the gel electrolyte improved to 2,000 cycles, revealing excellent long-term stability. Furthermore, the devices with the gel electrolyte exhibited self- healing properties, which are useful for portable and wearable electronics. The formation of Zn dendrite in liquid and gel electrolyte systems was observed using transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM) at the TLS 01B1 . The in situ synchrotron TXM analyses ( Fig. 2 ) show that the NP- MWCNT@GONR protective layer coating and freeze- dried gel electrolyte effectively inhibited dendrite growth on the anode and enhanced the reversibility of Zn compound deposition on the cathode, thus improving the long-term stability of the ZICs. Figure 3 summarizes the morphological changes of the Zn foil anode during the Zn stripping and plating process. Moreover, the ZICs with freeze-dried gel electrolytes showed excellent bending and self-healing properties. In conclusion, this work successfully demonstrated that the NP-MWCNT@GONR could be a promising cathode and protection layer material for ZICs. In addition, the NP-MWCNT@GONR//PVA-Zn(CF 3 SO 3 )//Zn device achieved good capacity, excellent stability, high safety, and outstanding recoverability, which could be promising for the development of flexible and self-healable ZICs. (Reported by Han-Yi Chen, National Tsing Hua University) This report features the work of Han-Yi Chen and his collaborators published in J. Power Sources 541 , 231627 (2022). TLS 01B1 X-ray Microscopy • TXM • Materials Science, Chemistry, Surface, Interface Chemistry References 1. M. Song, H. Tan, D. Chao, H. J. Fan, Adv. Funct. Mater. 28 , 1802564 (2018). 2. C. X. Xie, H. M. Zhang, W. B. Xu, W. Wang, X. F. Li, Angew. Chem. Int. Edit. 57 , 11171 (2018). 3. L. B. Dong, X. P. Ma, Y. Li, L. Zhao, W. B. Liu, J. Y. Cheng, C. J. Xu, B. H. Li, Q. H. Yang, F. Y. Kang, Energy Stor. Mater. 13 , 96 (2018). 4. S. L. Wu, Y. T. Chen, T. P. Jiao, J. Zhou, J. Y. Cheng, B. Liu, S. R. Yang, K. L. Zhang, W. J. Zhang, Adv. Energy Mater. 9 , 7 (2019). 5. S. L. Wang, Q. Wang, W. Zeng, M. Wang, L. M. Ruan, Y. A. Ma, Nanomicro Lett. 11 , 12 (2019). 6. C. H. Jiang, Z. M. Zou, Diam. Relat. Mat. 101 , 9 (2020). 7. G. G. Wallace, J. Chen, D. Li, S. E. Moulton, J. M. Razal, J. Mater. Chem. 20 , 3553 (2010). 8. G. Xiong, P. He, L. Liu, T. Chen, T. S. Fisher, Front. Energy Res. 3 , 39 (2015). 9. J. Yin, W. Zhang, N. A. Alhebshi, N. Salah, H. N. Alshareef, Adv. Energy Mater. 11 , 2100201 (2021). 10. W.-H. Lin, S.-F. Liu, S. Gull, T.-C. Su, K.-J. Tsai, C.-H. Kuo, C.-C. Lin, C.-C. Wang, M.-H. Lin, C.-L. Sun, H.-Y. Chen, J. Power Sourc- es 541 , 231627 (2022). Fig. 3 : Schematic illustrating the structural changes of the Zn foil anode during the Zn stripping and plating processes: (a) bare Zn foil in the liquid electrolyte, (b) bare Zn foil in the gel electrolyte, and (c) NP-MWCNT@ GONR-coated Zn foil in the liquid electrolyte. [Reproduced from Ref. 10]