Zinc Ion Batteries: Structural ENgineering for Severe Environment (SENSE)

清洁能源需要以高效和安全的配置储存，以帮助改善环境。锂离子电池仍然主导着电化学储能市场，但存在成本较高、潜在爆炸和制造复杂等缺点。对更可持续和更安全的电池技术的需求不断增加，需要在恶劣环境下使用储能设备来满足实际应用。水性电池系统作为下一代储能装置具有显著的潜力，因为它可以降低原材料成本，电池可以以更可持续和容易的工艺制造，并且可以避免爆炸事故。水/水凝胶电解液中的锌离子电池因其相对较低的成本和安全优势而成为有利的候选者。重要的是，锌离子电池对所有电池公司来说都是一项现成的技术，因为它们可以使用与锂离子电池相同的电池制造设施。然而，由于水合锌离子较大，二价锌离子极化程度较高，制约了当前锌离子电池的比容量、比能量和比功率密度。因此，推动了锌离子电池正极材料的发展。氧化锰基材料因其结构合理、性能丰富、性价比高、环境友好和工作电压窗口大而受到人们的青睐。但目前锰氧化物基正极材料的嵌入通道有限、充放电过程稳定性差、机理不明复杂、电子导电率低等问题亟待解决，因此锰氧化物基正极材料的结构创新有待进一步探索。在SENSE项目中，将通过多层次结构工程设计用于锌离子电池的锰基正极材料和合适的水凝胶电解液，以便在恶劣条件下使用它们，以创新廉价和高性能的器件。通过与学术和工业合作伙伴的合作，将使用最先进的材料和设备表征技术来了解电池行为的潜在机制。成功实现SENSE后，锌离子电池可以显示出&gt；650WH L-1的体积能量密度和&gt；220W L-1的功率密度。其能源价格估计为GB 50/kWh，低于锂离子电池(GB 126/kWh)和镍铁电池(GB 58/kWh)。因此，Sense不仅有助于推动英国电池研究和创新努力的质量，还将加强和刺激英国电池行业新技术的发展。

Clean energy needs to be stored in an efficient and safe configuration to help improve the environment. Li-ion batteries still dominate the electrochemical energy storage market, however, they have disadvantages of relatively high cost, potential explosion and complicated manufacture. The demands for more sustainable and safer battery technologies are constantly increasing and the utilisation of energy storage devices under severe environments are required to satisfy practical applications. Aqueous battery systems have remarkable potential as next-generation energy storage devices because the cost of raw materials can be reduced, the battery can be fabricated in a more sustainable and facile process and explosive accidents can be avoided. Zn-ion batteries in aqueous/hydrogel electrolyte are favourable candidates due to their relatively low cost and safety advantages. Importantly, Zn-ion batteries can be a ready-to-use technique for all battery companies as they can use the same battery fabrication facilities as Li-ion batteries. However, the specific capacity, energy and power density of current Zn-ion batteries are restricted due to the relatively large hydrated zinc ions and high polarization of bivalent zinc ions. Therefore, the development on the cathodes of Zn-ion batteries have been motivated. Manganese oxide-based materials are favourable due to their suitable structures, abundant and cost-effective properties, environmentally friendly nature and a large working voltage window. But the problems such as limited intercalated channels, poor stability during battery charge/discharge processes, unclarified and complicated mechanism and low electron conductivity of manganese oxide-based cathodes need to be solved, thus the innovation of structures for manganese oxide-based cathodes calls for further exploration. In the SENSE project, manganese-based cathode materials coupled with suitable hydrogel electrolytes for Zn-ion batteries will be designed via multi-level structural engineering to utilise them under harsh conditions, for the purpose of innovating inexpensive and high-performance devices. Through collaborations with both academic and industrial partners, state-of-the-art materials and device characterisation techniques will be used to understand the underlying mechanisms for battery behaviours.After successfully fulfilling SENSE, Zn-ion batteries can exhibit a volumetric energy density of > 650 Wh L-1 and a power density of > 220 W L-1. The energy price of which can be estimated as £50/kWh, lower than that of Li-ion batteries (£126/kWh), and Ni-Fe batteries (£58/kWh). Therefore, SENSE will not only help advance the quality of battery research and innovative efforts in the UK, but also strengthen and stimulate the development of new technologies in the UK battery industry.