What question did this study set out to answer?

The aim is to develop a trinity cooperative electrode that improves performance in zinc-halogen batteries by addressing critical limitations.

April 22, 2026

Trinity Cooperative Electrode as a High‐Performance Electrocatalytic Host for Ultra‐Stable, High‐Rate Zinc–Halogen Batteries

Key Points

The aim is to develop a trinity cooperative electrode that improves performance in zinc-halogen batteries by addressing critical limitations.
Integration of a conductive polymer, a supramolecular solvent matrix, and an elastic polymer network into the electrode framework.
Characterization of iodine conversion pathways using in situ and ex situ techniques alongside molecular dynamics simulations.
Testing the performance of TCE-based cells in various electrolyte compositions under high-rate conditions.
TCE-based cells achieve 255 mAh g^-1 at 1 A g^-1 and maintain 150 mAh g^-1 at 50 A g^-1 for over 50,000 cycles.
The system operates efficiently at temperatures as low as -10°C, indicating robustness under challenging conditions.
Demonstration of sequential multielectron reactions in multi-component electrolytes, yielding around 200 mAh g^-1 at 30 A g^-1 for over 22,000 cycles.

Abstract

Aqueous zinc-halogen batteries (ZHBs) offer safety and low cost but are hindered by halogen dissolution, shuttle effects, and sluggish interfacial kinetics. We present a trinity cooperative electrode (TCE) that integrates a conductive polymer, a supramolecular solvent matrix, and an elastic polymer network to simultaneously enhance electronic conductivity, mechanical/solvent stability, and halogen immobilization. The iodine conversion pathway is elucidated by in situ/ex situ characterizations and molecular dynamics simulations. In ZnI2 + Zn(CF3SO3)2 electrolytes, TCE-based cells deliver 255 mAh g-1 at 1 A g-1, retain 150 mAh g-1 at 50 A g-1 for > 50 000 cycles, and operate reliably at -10°C. The TCE also catalyzes Br-/Br2 conversion in Zn(CF3SO3)2 + ZnBr2 and enables sequential multielectron reactions in a ternary Zn(CF3SO3)2 + ZnI2 + ZnBr2 electrolyte, achieving ∼200 mAh g-1 at 30 A g-1 for > 22 000 cycles. This approach advances high-energy, long-life ZHBs through pseudocapacitive interfacial chemistry.

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Cite This Study

Lai et al. (Sun,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69e867136e0dea528ddeb5f3 https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.3832443

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