Tailoring Quasi-Solid-State 'Water-in-Swelling-Clay' Electrolytes for High-Voltage, Durable Aqueous Zinc-Ion Batteries

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Batteries play a critical role in renewable energy storage and energy transition. To address the intermittent nature of wind and solar power generations, high-performance batteries are necessary to connect these renewable energy sources-based electricity generators to electric power grid. Aqueous zinc-ion batteries have recently attracted tremendous research interest because of their advantages such as low safety risks, abundant elemental resources, low cost, and eco-friendliness. However, their widespread use is limited due to their lower energy density and limited cycle life compared to state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries. This project aims to develop high-voltage, durable, and cost-effective aqueous zinc-ion batteries by designing novel ‘water-in-swelling-clay’ electrolytes to address these issues. The knowledge obtained from this project will have a direct impact on alleviating power supply issues for efficient grid-scale energy storage and accelerate potential applications of the unique material design to other energy and environmental engineering fields such as adhesion and absorption. The project includes integrated outreach activities, such as research programs for local K-12 students and teachers, which can help students to acquire relevant knowledge and skills. This project will also enable the education and training of graduate and undergraduate students, including those from underrepresented groups, in the fields of materials and electrochemical energy storage.This project seeks to establish a fundamental understanding of the structure-property correlation of new, low-cost quasi-solid-state ‘water-in-swelling-clay’ electrolytes to achieve high voltage, high energy, and long cycle life of aqueous zinc-ion batteries for grid-scale energy storage. The rational electrolyte design strategy of tuning the atomic structures and interfacial chemistries of the swelling clay by chemical modifications is expected to effectively suppress water activities (e.g., decomposition), resulting in enhanced electrochemical performance of battery cells. The objectives of this proposal are to: (1) reveal fundamental mechanisms by multiscale modeling to understand and control the interactions among water molecules, clays, and ions that lead to high working voltage and enhanced energy density and cycle life of ‘water-in-swelling-clay’-based zinc-ion batteries, and (2) validate the modeling results by developing such high-voltage, durable aqueous batteries. The research approach is to integrate first-principles calculations, molecular dynamics simulations, phase-field modeling, and experimental validation of the advanced quasi-solid-state electrolytes, followed by the demonstration of high-performance battery cells. The gained fundamental knowledge promises to expedite the commercialization of aqueous zinc-ion batteries as competitive alternatives to lithium-ion batteries and address pressing issues in other aqueous electrochemical energy storage systems such as fuel cells and beyond-lithium batteries.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.