Paschen–Back effect modulation of SO42- hydration in magnetized electrolyte toward dendrite-free Zn-ion batteries

Xiayan Yao, Zhi Wang (), Jianwei Guo, Guoyu Qian, Hongchen Wang, Xuzhong Gong () and Dong Wang ()
Additional contact information
Xiayan Yao: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Zhi Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jianwei Guo: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Guoyu Qian: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Hongchen Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xuzhong Gong: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Dong Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-17

Abstract: Abstract Tuning anionic solvation structures and dynamic processes at solid–liquid interfaces is critical yet challenging for stabilizing Zn metal negative electrodes in Zn-ion batteries, particularly due to the issue of dendrite formation and hydrogen evolution reaction. Here, we show that highly hydrated SO42- can be effectively modulated under a strong magnetic field via the Paschen–Back effect on O-H vibrations, which reorients individual water molecules to manipulate Zn2+ solvation and protonated water clusters (H3O+). Molecular dynamics simulations and in situ Raman spectroscopy reveal that the hydrated SO42-–H2O complexes promote Zn2+ nucleation and deposition on the (002) plane, with preferential oxygen adsorption inhibiting two-dimensional Zn2+ diffusion. Moreover, magnetizing the electrolyte disrupts the Grotthuss proton-transfer pathway, suppressing H2 evolution and further reducing dendrite formation. By employing inexpensive permanent magnets without external power, this magnetization strategy offers a practical, energy-efficient route to enhance both the stability and performance of zinc-based rechargeable batteries.

Date: 2025
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-61310-2 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-61310-2

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61310-2

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().