Rapid construction of a tellurium artificial interface to form a highly reversible zinc anode

Abstract

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) represent a promising frontier in energy storage technology, characterized by its cost-effectiveness, safety, and environmental sustainability. However, the dendrite formation and corrosion on the zinc metal anode cause performance degradation and early cell failure in AZIBs. Herein, a novel tellurium complex treatment has been developed for a highly reversible zinc anode. The HTeCl₅ complex (tellurium complex) rapidly forms uniform tellurium nanoparticles on the zinc metal surface in a short period of time, creating a hydrophilic surface that promotes uniform zinc-ion flux. These beneficial effects effectively suppress zinc dendrite growth and side reactions, resulting in significant cycling stability for 2500 h at 1 mA cm⁻² for 1 mA h cm⁻² and for 300 h with 50% depth of discharge (DOD) under symmetric cell conditions. In particular, the performance of full cells incorporating LiMn₂O₄ (LMO) and NaV₃O₈ (NVO) as cathodes exhibited notable enhancement in capacity retention, a result of employing a zinc anode treated with the tellurium complex. This study provides a practical path for realizing long-term stable AZIBs.