Zn/V2O5 Aqueous Hybrid-Ion Battery with High Voltage Platform and Long Cycle Life

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2017 Dec 13;9(49):42717-42722. doi: 10.1021/acsami.7b13110. Epub 2017 Dec 4.

Abstract

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries attract increasing attention due to their low cost, high safety, and potential application in stationary energy storage. However, the simultaneous realization of high cycling stability and high energy density remains a major challenge. To tackle the above-mentioned challenge, we develop a novel Zn/V2O5 rechargeable aqueous hybrid-ion battery system by using porous V2O5 as the cathode and metallic zinc as the anode. The V2O5 cathode delivers a high discharge capacity of 238 mAh g-1 at 50 mA g-1. 80% of the initial discharge capacity can be retained after 2000 cycles at a high current density of 2000 mA g-1. Meanwhile, the application of a "water-in-salt" electrolyte results in the increase of discharge platform from 0.6 to 1.0 V. This work provides an effective strategy to simultaneously enhance the energy density and cycling stability of aqueous zinc ion-based batteries.

Keywords: aqueous hybrid-ion battery; high energy density; high voltage platform; vanadium pentoxide; “water-in-salt” electrolyte.