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Reducing the Cost of Zinc–Oxygen Batteries by Oxygen Recycling
Author(s) -
Yan Zhao,
Gao Jianxin,
Liu Min,
Wang Erdong,
Sun Gongquan
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
energy technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.91
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 2194-4296
pISSN - 2194-4288
DOI - 10.1002/ente.201700507
Subject(s) - battery (electricity) , oxygen , energy storage , renewable energy , oxygen evolution , zinc , waste management , power density , environmental science , electrochemistry , process engineering , materials science , chemistry , power (physics) , engineering , electrode , electrical engineering , metallurgy , physics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics
Abstract With the increasing demand of energy storage towards increasing the use of renewable energy technologies, electrochemical systems with low cost, high safety levels, and low environmental impact are critically needed. Zinc–air/oxygen batteries, which were always considered to be cheap, are losing their competitive advantages due to poor cyclic performance and energy efficiency. Herein, an effective strategy for oxygen recycling, which reduces the cost of oxygen to as low as ¢ 0.2 kWh −1 per cycle, is reported. With the use of oxygen, the performance of zinc–oxygen batteries is largely increased, with a maximum power density of 290 mW cm −2 , stable cycling for more than 1500 cycles, an average energy density of 60 %, and elimination of carbonates. A 1 kW/1 kWh zinc–oxygen battery system is also integrated and exhibits a satisfactory energy efficiency of 58 % and a high working power density of 75 mW cm −2 .