Semi-solid zinc slurry with abundant electron-ion transfer interfaces for aqueous zinc-based flow batteries

• Published in: Journal of power sources 2022-07, Vol.535, p.231442, Article 231442
• Main Authors: Chu, Fujun, Guo, Leibin, Wang, Shaocong, Cheng, Yuanhui
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Electron-ion network; Flow battery; Semi-solid reactor; Zinc slurry
• ISSN: 0378-7753; 1873-2755
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2022.231442

Aqueous zinc-based flow batteries have received considerable attention for large-scale energy storage due to their low cost, high safety and readily available raw materials. However, zinc dendrites shorten the battery's cycle life and limit the battery's specific capacity. Herein, we design a zinc slurry anode with 3D interconnected electron-ion networks to achieve high areal capacity and uniform distribution of reactive zinc. Multi-layered graphitic felt builds abundant avenues for electron transfer, and zinc slurry offers massive ions transfer channels. The capacity is up to 100 mAh cm−2, which is among the highest values in zinc-based flow batteries. The assembled zinc-iron flow battery delivers high coulomb efficiency of 100% and energy efficiency of 85-90%, respectively. Additionally, zinc-iron flow batteries show outstanding cycle stability over 580 h without performance degradation. This work proposes a novel avenue to solve the critical problems of low areal capacity and short cycle life, caused by limited zinc deposits and dendrites at anodes. [Display omitted] •Semi-solid zinc slurry anode has 3D interconnected electron-ion transfer networks.•The areal capacity is up to 100 mAh cm−2, the highest value ever reported.•Zinc-iron flow batteries with it can achieve a CE of 100% and an EE of 85%.•This novel anode has an ultra-long cycle life over 580 h.