Surface/interface nanoengineering for rechargeable Zn-air batteries

Among the various energy storage systems, the rechargeable Zn-air battery is one of the most promising candidates for the consumer electronic market and portable energy sources. In a Zn-air battery, surface/interface chemistry plays a key role in their performance optimization of power density, stab...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEnergy & environmental science Vol. 13; no. 4; pp. 1132 - 1153
Main Authors Zhou, Tianpei, Zhang, Nan, Wu, Changzheng, Xie, Yi
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cambridge Royal Society of Chemistry 01.01.2020
Subjects
Chemical reduction
Electrical conductivity
Electrical resistivity
Electrocatalysts
Electrodes
Electronic commerce
Energy sources
Energy storage
Interfacial properties
Mass transfer
Metal air batteries
Nanoengineering
Optimization
Oxygen
Oxygen evolution reactions
Oxygen reduction reactions
Rechargeable batteries
Storage batteries
Storage systems
Zinc
Zinc-oxygen batteries
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Summary:Among the various energy storage systems, the rechargeable Zn-air battery is one of the most promising candidates for the consumer electronic market and portable energy sources. In a Zn-air battery, surface/interface chemistry plays a key role in their performance optimization of power density, stability and rechargeable efficiency. A Zn-air battery requires gas-involved ORR (oxygen reduction reaction) and OER (oxygen evolution reaction) reactions, always leading to complex reactions and sluggish kinetic processes at the three-phase interface, in which rational surface/interface nanoengineering at the micro and meso-level play a decisive role. In this review, we cover the influence of surface/interface properties of electrocatalysts and air electrodes on the performance of rechargeable Zn-air batteries, and the latest surface/interface nanoengineering progress from the micro to meso-level is surveyed. Moreover, the surface/interface characteristics of electrocatalysts and air electrodes at the triple-phase interface, which are closely related to the four key parameters of electrical conductivity, reaction energy barrier, reaction surface area and mass transfer behavior, are also described in detail. Based on the discussion of the latest achievements of surface/interface nanoengineering, some personal perspectives on future advanced development of rechargeable Zn-air batteries are presented as well. Surface/interface nanoengineering of electrocatalysts and air electrodes will promote the rapid development of high-performance rechargeable Zn-air batteries.
Bibliography:Prof. Yi Xie received her BS degree from Xiamen University (1988) and PhD from the University of Science and Technology of China (1996). She is now a Principal Investigator of Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and a full professor at the Department of Chemistry, USTC. She has been the recipient of many awards, including the Chinese National Nature Science Award and the IUPAC Distinguished Women in Chemistry/Chemical Engineering Award. Her interests are in cutting-edge research at four major frontiers: solid state materials chemistry; nanotechnology; energy science; and theoretical physics.
Nan Zhang received his BS degree in Composite Materials and Engineering at Northwestern Polytechnical University in 2016. He is currently pursuing his PhD in National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory at University of Science and Technology of China. His research is focused on the synthesis and characterization of electrocatalysts for energy storage and conversion, especially for Zn-air batteries and proton exchange membrane fuel cells.
Prof. Changzheng Wu obtained his BS (2002) and PhD (2007) degrees in the Department of Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China. He has since worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale. He is now a full professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China. Dr Wu's research is highly interdisciplinary. His current research interests focus on the synthesis and characterization of inorganic two-dimensional nanomaterials and regulation of their intrinsic physical properties for wide applications in energy storage or energy conversion.
Tianpei Zhou received his BS degree in New Energy Materials and Devices at Hefei University of Technology in 2015. He is currently pursuing his PhD at the Department of Chemistry, University of Science and Technology of China. His main research interests are renewable energy materials and devices, especially for high-performance metal-air batteries and proton exchange membrane fuel cells.
ISSN:1754-5692
1754-5706
DOI:10.1039/c9ee03634b