Mercaptosilane Engineered Interface with Surface-Preferred Crystal Plane for High-Performance Zn Anode

Zn-ion battery (ZIB) has drawn huge attentions as a prospective energy storage system for the next generation, but dendrite and side reaction issues related to Zn have limited their potential applications. Here, a combined approach involving the modification of surface texture and the implementation of a passivation layer is proposed to tackle the problem. A zinc-silane composite layer is coated on (002)-preferred Zn (ZSi@Zn) by selective acid etching, concomitant with the hydrolysis of Mercaptosilane. The preferred (002) crystal plane, in conjunction with the zinc-silane composite layer, leads in integrated interfacial transport and deposition control. As a result, the ZSi@Zn electrode has dramatically increased stability and uniform Zn deposition behavior. Remarkably, it exhibits a Coulombic efficiency of approximately 99.4 %, a long lifespan of around 3000 hours at the current density of 1 mA cm-2 with a capacity of 0.5 mAh cm-2. The excellent reversibility of zinc persists with current densities of 2, 5, and 10 mA cm-2. Furthermore, Zn-MnO2 battery constructed with ZSi@Zn also delivers excellent performance, manifesting a capacity retention of 88.4 % after 4000 cycles. A zinc anode modification method combining surface texture regulation and passive layer coating is proposed to overcome the dendrites and side reaction issues. The synergy between the preferred (002) crystalline surface and the zinc-silane composite layer achieves suppression of water-induced side reactions and guiding the preferred orientation deposition, resulting in high electrochemical performance for zinc ion batteries.image