Hierarchical regulation of reversible deposition in bicontinuous structure zinc anode for aqueous zinc batteries

The practical application of aqueous Zn-ion batteries in grid-scale energy storage is constrained by dendrite formation and side reactions at Zn anodes. Herein, we report an in situ constructed three-dimensional bicontinuous Zn powder-based anode in bulk phase via spark plasma sintering technology. The CuZn 5 phase alloy provides abundant nucleation sites to prevent Zn aggregation, while its superior lattice compatibility with Zn promotes flatter deposition morphology and inhibits dendrite formation. The symmetric cell with the three-dimensional bicontinuous-phase anode maintained long-term cycling over 1000 h with a voltage hysteresis of 48 mV. The full cell with MnO 2 cathode delivered a reversible capacity of 180 mAh g −1 , achieving long-term cycling for 500 cycles at 1 A g −1 . Moreover, the Zn-iodine cell delivered stable cycling over 3500 cycles with 100% capacity retention. This work provides new ideas for designing Zn anode materials and offers valuable insights into various metal anode systems.