Carbon nanomaterials for stabilizing zinc anodes in zinc-ion batteries

Because of their low price, excellent safety and energy storage performance, aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have great potential for use in the power grid and in wearable devices. However, the Zn anode of ZIBs is not stable, for example, Zn dendrite can be formed on the Zn anode accompanied by hydrogen evolution and side reactions, leading to its instability, which has been an obstacle to its use. Carbon nanomaterials have recently been used to improve the performance of Zn anodes due to their unique structure, excellent conductivity and good stability. This review summarizes the recent development for stabilizing zinc anodes. The carbon nanomaterials are used as hosts, protective coating layers, electrolyte additives and modifiers in the separators to stabilize the Zn electrodes. The challenges involved in doing this are presented, and some future developments are outlined.