An Ultrahigh‐Modulus Hydrogel Electrolyte for Dendrite‐Free Zinc Ion Batteries

Abstract Quasi‐solid‐state aqueous zinc ion batteries suffer from anodic zinc dendrite growth during plating/stripping processes, impeding their commercial application. The inhibition of zinc dendrites by high‐modulus electrolytes has been proven to be effective. However, hydrogel electrolytes are difficult to achieve high modulus owing to their inherent high water contents. This work reports a hydrogel electrolyte with ultrahigh modulus that can overcome the growth stress of zinc dendrites through mechanical suppression effect. By combining wet‐annealing, solvent‐exchange, and salting‐out processes and tuning the hydrophobic and crystalline domains, a hydrogel electrolyte is obtained with substantial water…

• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 61825403, Nos.22271139, 22475096, 22479074, 22425106, 21905131
• FR
  Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities

  Award: 020514380294