Constructing nickel-based bifunctional oxygen catalyst and dual network hydrogel electrolyte for high-performance, compressible and rechargeable zinc-air batteries

Abstract

Wearable Zn-air battery (ZAB) delivers great potential for the next-generation wearable electronic devices. It requires the ZAB accommodating not only the high-power, high efficiency but also the mechanical stability even subjected to largely compression force. However, it remains a great challenge to obtain the highly efficient O2 catalyst as well as the compressible electrolyte. Herein, we constructed a high-performed and compressible ZAB based on the Ni-based bifunctional O2 catalyst and designed a dual network hydrogel electrolyte for outstanding electrochemical and mechanical performance. The as-obtained compressible ZAB based on the Ni-NC catalyst and the hydrogel electrolyte could exhibited an open-circuit voltage of 1.44 V, a peak power density of 87.7 mW cm−2, and an energy efficiency of ∼58%. When the ZAB being compressed up to 50%, the maximum power density could retain at 69.3%. This research could provide new insights for applying the Ni-NC catalyst and the dual network hydrogel to obtain high-performance wearable ZAB.