Achieving highly reversible regulation of zinc deposition through ultrafast in situ construction of multifunctional zinc anode interfaces

The zinc anode surface suffers from severe zinc dendrite growth and side reactions, such as hydrogen evolution, significantly diminishing its reversibility and cycle life. In this study, we have introduced and successfully implemented, for the first time, the ultrafast in-situ construction of a periodic semi-spherical multifunctional interfacial layer composed of copper nanoparticles (Cu|Zn) on the zinc anode surface. By optimizing the distribution of the electric field and Zn2+ concentration, we effectively mitigate the "Tip effect", achieving highly reversible control over zinc deposition, and the in-situ construction process takes only 3 min. Theoretical calculations and COMSOL simulations demonstrate that the Cu|Zn anode exhibits high binding energy, a uniform electric field, and Zn2+ concentration distribution. Experimental results reveal that the Cu|Zn anode achieves exceptional long-term cyclic stability, exceeding 3200 h at 1 mA cm−2 and remaining cyclically stable for over 2000 h at 5 mA cm−2. Furthermore, in a full cell with MnO2@MXene as the cathode material, the Cu|Zn anode delivers a capacity of 282.1 mA h g − 1 after 1400 cycles at 2 A g − 1. This study holds significance for the rational design of high-stability and reversible interface layers, promoting their practical application in aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZBs).