Advances in 3D Printing for Zinc Ion Battery Applications: A Review of Electrode Materials and Electrolytes

Abstract

Zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) are a cost-effective, safe, and sustainable alternative to lithium-ion batteries owing to their natural abundance, low-cost, aqueous compatibility, as well as the potential for high practical energy and power through multi-electron redox chemistry. However, their commercialization is hampered by intrinsic challenges such as sluggish Zn 2+ transport, cathode instability, zinc-anode passivation and dendrite formation, as well as suboptimal electrolyte/electrode interfaces. Recently, additive manufacturing or 3D printing has emerged as a powerful tool to co-design battery components with precise control over geometry, porosity, tortuosity and hierarchical morphology. This architectural control enhances active material utilization, ion/electron transport and regulate electrochemical interfaces, directly addressing the key issues to boost energy and power densities. Here, we systematically summarize and critically assess recent progress and persistent challenges in ZIBs, and analyze diverse 3D printed material designs that mitigate the limitations of conventional fabrication. We also highlight a variety of 3D printing techniques, representative contributions and outline the future prospects and challenges needed to advance 3D printing in the development of ZIBs.