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A Facile and Scalable Strategy for Fabrication of Superior Bifunctional Freestanding Air Electrodes for Flexible Zinc–Air Batteries
Author(s) -
Liu Ting,
Mou Jirong,
Wu Ziping,
Lv Chao,
Huang Jianlin,
Liu Meilin
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.202003407
Subject(s) - materials science , bifunctional , carbon nanotube , fabrication , nanotechnology , electrode , battery (electricity) , oxygen evolution , catalysis , carbon fibers , chemical engineering , electrochemistry , composite number , composite material , organic chemistry , medicine , chemistry , alternative medicine , pathology , power (physics) , physics , quantum mechanics , engineering
The large‐scale fabrication of efficient and inexpensive bifunctional catalysts is highly desirable but very challenging for oxygen reduction reaction and oxygen evolution reaction (ORR–OER) in metal–air batteries. Here, a facile and scalable approach for the fabrication of hierarchically porous air electrode consisting of cobalt nanoparticles embedded in bamboo‐like nitrogen‐rich carbon nanotubes (Co/N@CNTs), which are in situ grown onto the surface of carbon nanotube macrofilm (CNMF) through a catalytic growth of crosslinked carbon nanotubes is reported. The resulting hybrid macrofilm (Co/N@CNTs@CNMF) can be directly used as a freestanding air electrode without adding any binder or addivities. More importantly, when incorporated in a zinc–air battery (ZAB), the Co/N@CNTs@CNMF electrode demonstrates drastically enhanced ORR and OER activity while maintaining excellent durability during cycling. Further, when it is used to assemble an all‐solid‐state ZAB, the cell also displays excellent mechanical flexibility, implying promising perspectives as power sources for wearable electronics.