"Water-in-Water" Biphasic Electrolyte for Aqueous Zinc-ion Batteries.

Authors

Yilang Yao, Dun Wang, Xiaoke Wang, Xianbin Kuang, Xiangyong Zhang, Cuiping Han

Published in

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.). Pages e75382. Oct 15, 2026. Epub Oct 15, 2026.

Abstract

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) are constrained by unstable Zn metal interfaces, where nonuniform Zn²⁺ transport induces concentration polarization and accelerates parasitic reactions. Here we show that Zn²⁺ flux can instead be regulated by aqueous-aqueous interfaces. A fully aqueous "water-in-water" (W/W) biphasic electrolyte, comprising dextran (Dex)-rich phase droplets (∼10 µm) suspended in a polyethylene glycol (PEG)-rich aqueous phase, creates phase boundaries that continuously buffer local Zn²⁺ accumulation and redistribute ions during plating and stripping. As a result, Zn||Zn cells cycle stably for 1100 h at 10 mA cm^-2 and 10 mAh cm^-2, and Ah-level Zn||NaV₃O₈ pouch cells sustain long-term operation. This work demonstrates an aqueous electrolyte architecture in which interfacial electrostatics, rather than solvent chemistry, governs Zn²⁺ transport.

PMID:
42885335
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 16 Oct 2026.

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