Stereoisomerism of multi-functional electrolyte additives for initially anodeless aqueous zinc metal batteries

Shengyang Huang, Hao Fu, Hyun Min Kwon, Min Sung Kim, Jun-Dong Zhang, Jun Lu, Jun Su Kim, Gun Jang, Dong Hyun Min, Won Kim, Guanyao Wang, Wenwu Li, Rui Zhang, Sae Byeok Jo (), Xiang Chen, Qiang Zhang, Kang Xu (), Michel Armand and Ho Seok Park ()
Additional contact information
Shengyang Huang: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Hao Fu: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Hyun Min Kwon: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Min Sung Kim: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Jun-Dong Zhang: Tsinghua University
Jun Lu: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Jun Su Kim: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Gun Jang: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Dong Hyun Min: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Won Kim: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Guanyao Wang: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Wenwu Li: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Rui Zhang: Beijing Institute of Technology
Sae Byeok Jo: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)
Xiang Chen: Tsinghua University
Qiang Zhang: Tsinghua University
Kang Xu: SES AI Corp.
Michel Armand: Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Alava Technology Park
Ho Seok Park: Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU)

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Abstract Stereoisomerism, arising from the distinctive spatial arrangements of atoms despite identical molecular formulae, often displays different chemical reactivities. Herein, we demonstrate how geometric isomerism of multifunctional electrolyte additives affects aqueous zinc metal batteries. Inspired by natural bacteria, we compared trans-butenedioic acid (fumaric acid) and its cis-isomer (maleic acid), revealing different hydrogen bonding dynamics and solvation environments, as confirmed by femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and computational simulations. The trans-isomer promotes the formation of favorable interfacial structures and ion pathways, improving Zn deposition reversibility and cycling stability. As a result, Zn symmetric cells showed stable plating/stripping for over 6150 h at 1 mA cm−2 and 1 mAh cm−2 and 1500 h at 5 mA cm−2 and 5 mAh cm−2. The Zn-predeposited Cu||MnVO full cells exhibited a capacity retention exceeding 70% after 1000 cycles at 2 A g−1, ultimately achieving over 270 cycles for initially anodeless Cu||zincated MnVO cells at a high current density of 30 mA cm−2. The application of the isomerism concept on the design of new electrolyte materials and associated solvated and interphasial chemistries offers a new pathway to the next generation of batteries.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-61382-0 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_s41467-025-61382-0

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

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61382-0

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 ().