Research Projects

The research focuses on improving the electrochemical performance of rechargeable aqueous Zn-ion batteries (ZIB) due to their low cost, material abundance, high safety, acceptable energy density, and environmental friendliness. The cathode, anode, and electrolyte play a crucial role in determining ZIB's performance. The project aims to develop layered transition metal chalcogenides and organic molecules-based cathode materials, along with Zn anode surface modification using transition metal chalcogenides, reduced graphene oxide (rGO), and conducting polymer. The cathode materials can be synthesized using hydrothermal, soft chemical, and thermal annealing routes and characterized using various techniques. The anode materials can be developed as replacements for Zn foil/plate, using Zn@Activated carbon, electrodeposition of Zn, Zn-MXene composite, CNT-Bulky gel@Zn, and surface modification of Zn anode. Electrolyte engineering techniques like asymmetric salt additive, high salt concentration, asymmetric solvent additive, and capping water molecule activity will be employed to avoid Zn dendrite growth and improve device stability. The pouch cell (6×5×0.5 cm) ZIB will be fabricated based on the modified cathode and anode materials, expected to deliver a high specific capacity of ~750-1,000 mAh, high-capacity retention after ~10,000 charge/discharge cycles, and a stabilized Zn stripping/plating layer with limited side reactions. The pouch cell will be developed through various processes, including slurry preparation, roll to roll coating, cutting, tab welding, layer by layer stacking of electrodes, electrolyte filling, and vacuum degassing. The general correlation between the layer transition metal chalcogenides and organic molecule-based cathode, nanocarbonaceous/Zn composite anode, and electrolyte can be established based on the output of the developed ZIB, which could help the field grow further and open up new possibilities in energy storage processes related to ZIB.