Citation: Jing Huang, Zhexuan Liu, Hailong Li, Xiaoyu Wu, Kun Liu, Shuquan Liang, Guozhao Fang. Regulation of bound water molecular state in mineral-based electrolyte for highly stable aqueous Zn-MnO₂ batteries[J]. Chinese Chemical Letters, ;2026, 37(9): 111388. doi: 10.1016/j.cclet.2025.111388 shu

Regulation of bound water molecular state in mineral-based electrolyte for highly stable aqueous Zn-MnO₂ batteries

Jing Huang ^a ,
Zhexuan Liu ^{b, *,} ,
Hailong Li ^c ,
Xiaoyu Wu ^c ,
Kun Liu ^{a, *,} ,
Shuquan Liang ^c ,
Guozhao Fang ^{c, *,}

a.
School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
b.
College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Central South University of Forestry & Technology, Changsha 410004, China
c.
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China

lzxuan@csuft.edu.cn

kliu@csu.edu.cn

fg_zhao@csu.edu.cn

Received Date: 2 April 2025
Revised Date: 25 May 2025
Accepted Date: 28 May 2025
Available Online: 28 May 2025

Figures(4)

The instability of the Zn metal anode in aqueous zinc-ion batteries is the main culprit limiting promotion and practicability. Solid-liquid hybrid electrolytes, as an emerging system containing electrochemically inert fillers, have been proposed and shown significant progress in recent years. The electrolyte regulation for suppressing side reactions mainly depends on the state of bound water molecules, so exploring the influence of intrinsic properties of fillers on electrolyte structure is of great significance. This work compared the effects of kaolin and its derived mullite on the state of bound water molecules and electrochemical behaviors in hybrid electrolytes. Relying solely on the high specific surface area of mullite is not sufficient to provide enough ion diffusion paths and limit water molecule activity, resulting in severe polarization and side reactions. The layered structure of kaolin can accommodate a large number of water molecules, which constructs hydrogen bonding networks for H⁺ transport as the charge carrier with lower energy barrier. Hence, the kaolin-based electrolytes can inherit both low polarization of conventional liquid electrolytes and the durability to side reactions of hybrid electrolytes simultaneously. As a result, the aqueous Zn-MnO₂ battery with kaolin-based electrolyte can provide high specific capacity of ~300 mAh/g at 100 mA/g, and maintain at least 164 and 85.2 mAh/g at 300 and 500 mA/g for > 500 cycles.
- Kaolin,
- Electrolyte regulation,
- Water molecule state,
- Charge carrier transport,
- Aqueous zinc-manganese batteries
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通讯作者: 陈斌, bchen63@163.com

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沈阳化工大学材料科学与工程学院沈阳 110142

Regulation of bound water molecular state in mineral-based electrolyte for highly stable aqueous Zn-MnO2 batteries

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通讯作者: 陈斌, bchen63@163.com

Regulation of bound water molecular state in mineral-based electrolyte for highly stable aqueous Zn-MnO₂ batteries