School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials Central South University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Zequan Zhao
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials Central South University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Yongqiang Yang
Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hong Kong SAR the people's Republic of China
Hao Zhang
Department of Chemical Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge Massachusetts USA
Guojun Lai
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials Central South University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Bingan Lu
School of Physics and Electronics Hunan University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Peng Zhou
Hunan Provincial Key Defense Laboratory of High Temperature Wear‐Resisting Materials and Preparation Technology Hunan University of Science and Technology Xiangtan Hunan the people's Republic of China
Lina Chen
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials Central South University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Jiang Zhou
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials Central South University Changsha Hunan the people's Republic of China
Abstract Static rechargeable zinc‐iodine (Zn‐I2) batteries are superior in safety, cost‐effectiveness, and sustainability, giving them great potential for large‐scale energy storage applications. However, the shuttle effect of polyiodides on the cathode and the unstable anode/electrolyte interface hinder the development of Zn‐I2 batteries. Herein, a self‐segregated biphasic electrolyte (SSBE) was proposed to synergistically address those issues. The strong interaction between polyiodides and the organic phase was demonstrated to limit the shuttle effect of polyiodides. Meanwhile, the hybridization of polar organic solvent in the inorganic phase modulated the bonding structure, as well as the effective weakening of water activity, optimizing the interface during zinc electroplating. As a result, the Zn‐I2 coin cells performed a capacity retention of nearly 100% after 4000 cycles at 2 mA cm−2. And a discharge capacity of 0.6 Ah with no degradation after 180 cycles was achieved in the pouch cell. A photovoltaic energy storage battery was further achieved and displayed a cumulative capacity of 5.85 Ah. The successfully designed energy storage device exhibits the application potential of Zn‐I2 batteries for stationary energy storage.
