3D Zn-Sn alloy design for stabilizing aqueous zinc-ion battery anodes
SONG Yi
LI Houzhen
KANG Yongchao
WANG Shuhua
Abstract：Objective Aqueous zinc-ion batteries(AZIBs)are promising candidates for developing large-scale energy storage systems due to their inherent safety and non-flammability compared to lithium-ion batteries.However,challenges such as corrosion,hydro-gen evolution,and dendrite formation hinder their cycling stability and reversibility.To address these issues,the study devel-oped a three-dimensional(3D)Zn-Sn alloy anode,which demonstrated enhanced corrosion resistance,suppressed hydrogen evolution,and dendrite-free Zn deposition,thereby improving the overall performance of AZIBs.
Methods A 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode was fabricated through a series of steps.Firstly,a 5 mM SnF2 solution was prepared,and the pretreated Zn foil was immersed in it for 3 min,followed by folding and rolling.After repeating the immersion and rolling pro-cess 10 times,the obtained electrode was annealed at 500 ℃ for 3 h in an argon atmosphere to obtain a 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode.
Results and Discussion X-ray diffraction(XRD)analysis confirmed the successful doping of Sn into the Zn matrix.Energy-dispersive spectroscopy(EDS)revealed a uniform Sn distribution with a mass fraction of 11.31％in the Zn-Sn alloy anode.Electrochemical tests demonstrated that the Zn-Sn alloy anode exhibited a more positive corrosion potential(-0.962 V vs.-0.964 V)and a reduced corrosion current density(3.89 mA·cm-2 vs.6.26 mA·cm-2)compared to the pure Zn anode,indi-cating better corrosion resistance.The hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)potential was reduced from-1.762 V to-1.819 V at 10 mA·cm-2,indicating effective HER suppression.The nucleation and deposition behavior of Zn2+on the Zn-Sn alloy anode was investigated using a Zn||Cu half-cell.Cyclic voltammetry(CV)results reveal a significantly lower nucleation overpotential of 41 mV on the Zn-Sn alloy anode compared to 103 mV on the Zn anode,indicating a lower nucleation barrier.The lower bar-rier facilitated the uniform Zn2+deposition and effectively eliminated dendrite formation.Additionally,chronoamperometry(CA)analysis exhibited the advantages of uniform Zn2+deposition at the 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode.It showed that Zn2+on the Zn-Sn alloy anode surface transitioned more rapidly into the 3D diffusion stage,shortening the 2D diffusion process that typically leads to the formation of inhomogeneous zinc nuclei.This mechanism effectively prevented dendrite growth,thereby improving the cycling stability and reversibility of the battery.The symmetric cell with 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode reached a cycle life of 850 h at a current density of 0.5 mA·cm-1.The Zn-Sn||Cu half-cell maintained an average coulombic efficiency(CE)of 98％after 900 cycles.In full-cell configurations,the Zn-Sn||NHVO cell obtained a capacity of 182 mAh·g1 at 4 A·g-1 and retained a 47.2 mAh·g-1 higher specific capacity than that of the Zn||NHVO cell after 1 000 cycles.
Conclusion In this paper,a 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode was prepared through a series of processes,including replacement,rolling,and annealing.The morphology,electrochemical properties,and cycling stability of the 3D Zn-Sn alloy anode were character-ized and analyzed.The results demonstrated that the use of 3D Zn-Sn alloy anodes enhanced the cycle stability and reversibility of symmetric cells,half-cells,and full cells.This work provides a new approach for preparing high-performance alloy anodes,offering a promising solution to improve the anode performance of zinc-ion batteries and produce high-performance AZIBs.
Keywords：aqueous zinc-ion batterythree-dimensional Zn-Sn alloy anodecorrosion resistancehydrogen evolution suppres-sionZn dendrite
Publication Date：2026-03-01
Online Publishing Date：2026-05-22(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：11( 113-123 )