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Vol. 17 (2025)

Screening Anionic Groups Within Zwitterionic Additives for Eliminating Hydrogen Evolution and Dendrites in Aqueous Zinc Ion Batteries

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-025-01826-w
Biao Wang
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Chaohong Guan
University of Michigan-Shanghai Jiao Tong University Joint Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, People’s Republic of China
Qing Zhou
Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People’s Republic of China
Yiqing Wang
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Yutong Zhu
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Haifeng Bian
Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People’s Republic of China
Zhou Chen
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Shuangbin Zhang
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Xiao Tan
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Bin Luo
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia
Shaochun Tang
Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People’s Republic of China
Xiangkang Meng
Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Artificial Functional Materials, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People’s Republic of China
Cheng Zhang
Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Queensland 4072, Australia

Corresponding Author: Cheng Zhang

c.zhang3@uq.edu.au

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 17 (2025), Article Number: 314

Abstract

Zwitterionic materials with covalently tethered cations and anions have great potential as electrolyte additives for aqueous Zn-ion batteries (AZIBs) owing to their appealing intrinsic characteristics and merits. However, the impact of cationic and anionic moieties within zwitterions on enhancing the performance of AZIBs remains poorly understood. Herein, three zwitterions, namely carboxybetaine methacrylate (CBMA), sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA), and 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC), were selected as additives to investigate their different action mechanisms in AZIBs. All three zwitterions have the same quaternary ammonium as the positively charged group, but having different negatively charged segments, i.e., carboxylate, sulfonate, and phosphate for CBMA, SBMA, and MPC, respectively. By systematical electrochemical analysis, these zwitterions all contribute to enhanced cycling life of Zn anode, with MPC having the most pronounced effect, which can be attributed to the synergistic effect of positively quaternary ammonium group and unique negatively phosphate groups. As a result, the Zn//Zn cell with MPC as additive in ZnSO4 electrolyte exhibits an ultralong lifespan over 5000 h. This work proposes new insights to the future development of multifunctional zwitterionic additives for remarkably stable AZIBs.


Highlights:
1 Three zwitterions with identical quaternary ammonium cations but distinct anionic groups, i.e. carboxylate, sulfonate and phosphate, show distinct impact in aqueous zinc ion batteries.
2 The zwitterion with phosphate group (2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine, MPC) uniquely promotes oriented Zn (002) plane deposition and provides pH buffering capability, effectively suppressing dendrite formation and side reactions.
3 The Zn//NaVO full cell with MPC additive delivers an ultralong cycling life of 4000 cycles with an exceptionally low capacity decay of 0.014% per cycle.

Keywords

Zwitterions Electrolyte additives Zinc deposition Aqueous batteries
Wang, Biao, Chaohong Guan, Qing Zhou, Yiqing Wang, Yutong Zhu, Haifeng Bian, Zhou Chen, Shuangbin Zhang, Xiao Tan, Bin Luo, Shaochun Tang, Xiangkang Meng, and Cheng Zhang. 2025. “Screening Anionic Groups Within Zwitterionic Additives for Eliminating Hydrogen Evolution and Dendrites in Aqueous Zinc Ion Batteries”. Nano-Micro Letters 17 (June):314. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-025-01826-w.
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