Hydrophobic POM Electrocatalyst Achieves Low Voltage "Charge" in Zn-air Battery Coupled with Bisphenol A Degradation

Zn-air batteriesare a perspective power source for grid-storage. But, after they are discharged at1.1 to 1.2 V, large overpotential is required for their charging (usually 2.5 V). This is due to a sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER). Incorporating organic pollutants into the cathode electrolyte is a feasible strategy for lowering the required charging potential. In the discharge process, the related oxygen reduction reaction, hydrophobic electrocatalysts are more popular than hydrophilic ones. Here, a hydrophobic bifunctional polyoxometalate electrocatalyst is synthesized by precise structural design. It shows excellent activities in both bisphenol A degradation and oxygen reduction reactions. In bisphenol A containing electrolyte, to achieve 100 mA ⋅ cm-2 , its potential is only 1.32 V, which is 0.34 V lower than oxygen evolution reaction. In the oxygen reduction reaction, this electrocatalyst follows the four-electron mechanism. In both bisphenol A degradation and oxygen reduction reactions, it shows excellent stability. With this electrocatalyst as cathode material and bisphenol A containing KOH as electrolyte, a Zn-air battery was assembled. When charged at 85 mA ⋅ cm-2 , it only requires 1.98 V. Peak power density of this Zn-air battery reaches 120.5 mW ⋅ cm-2 . More importantly, in the charge process, bisphenol A is degraded, which achieves energy saving and pollutant removal simultaneously in one Zn-air battery.