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1. An Organic Carboxylate Host for Stable Sodium Metal Batteries

   https://doi.org/10.1002/sstr.70512  

   Chen, Chengxiang; Wu, Wenda; Yang, Pan; Zhao, Bowen; Lam, Steven; Cai, Nihao; Huang, Jinghao; Luo, Haoming; Akpowu, George Arubi; Qin, Yunan; et al (June 2026, Small Structures)

   Sodium metal batteries (SMBs) hold great promise for the development of high‐energy, sustainable energy storage solutions, but their practical deployment is hampered by unstable solid electrolyte interphases, uncontrollable sodium dendrite growth, and low Coulombic efficiency (CE) during repeated Na plating/stripping cycles. To address these challenges, we introduce an organic interlayer, containing perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride sodium salt (Na₄PT), on the surface of Cu current collector. This interlayer forms a sodiophilic organic interphase that lowers the nucleation barriers for sodium deposition and guides the formation of the interphase through polar carbonyl/carboxylate sites and aπ‐conjugated organic framework. A dendrite‐free sodium metal anode is achieved using Na₄PT coated Cu current collector. Under capacity‐limited Na plating/stripping, Na||Na₄PT@Cu half‐cells deliver reversible capacities of 500 and 1,000 mAh g⁻¹at 0.1 and 1 A  g⁻¹for 500 cycles with average CE above 99%. Post‐cycling scanning electron microscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements confirm that Na₄PT@Cu promotes compact and uniform Na deposits and supports the formation of a stable interphase with reduced parasitic decomposition, directly correlating interfacial chemistry/morphology with high plating/stripping reversibility. These results highlight organic carboxylate coating as a practical interface engineering strategy for dendrite‐free SMBs. 

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2. Highly textured metal anodes for stable aqueous batteries: Fabrication and characterization

   https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adx0289  

   Hong, Shifeng; Fang, Mingjia; Baffour, Samuel; Gao, Ziang; Jin, Shuo; Xu, Haobo; Yang, Rong; Archer, Lynden A (July 2025, Science Advances)

   We report a purely mechanical “cold-compression flow” method for fabricating Zn, Sn, and In substrates with tunable crystallographic textures. Using textured Zn as a model system, we investigate Zn electrocrystallization and demonstrate correlated growth of crystalline films with correlation lengths from tens to hundreds of micrometers. At 5 milliamperes per square centimeter (mA/cm²), capacities between 20 and 82 milliampere hours per square centimeter (mA·hour/cm²) are achieved depending on substrate texture level. At higher currents (40 mA/cm²), capacities reach up to 604 mA·hour/cm². Rotating disk electrode studies show that dominantly (002) textured Zn substrates exhibit enhanced corrosion resistance and reduced interphase passivation. We introduce an effective Damköhler number (Da*) to concisely describe morphological evolution during electrocrystallization across substrates with different textures. High-texture (002) Zn substrates substantially enhance performance in high-capacity (~20 mA·hour/cm²) symmetric Zn||Zn cells and full cells (Zn||δ-MnO₂and Zn||I₂), enabling fast-charging and prolonged energy storage in coin and pouch rechargeable Zn battery formats. 

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3. Chaotropic Salt‐Aided “Water‐In‐Organic” Electrolyte for Highly Reversible Zinc‐Ion Batteries Across a Wide Temperature Range

   https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202311271  

   Wang, Ziqing; Diao, Jiefeng; Burrow, James N; Brotherton, Zachary W; Lynd, Nathaniel A; Henkelman, Graeme; Mullins, Charles Buddie (February 2024, Advanced Functional Materials)

   Abstract Aqueous zinc‐ion batteries are promising alternatives to lithium‐ion batteries due to their cost‐effectiveness and improved safety. However, several challenges, including corrosion, dendrites, and water decomposition at the Zn anode, hinder their performance. Herein, an approach is proposed, that deviates from the conventional design by adding water into a propylene carbonate‐based organic electrolyte to prepare a non‐flammable “water‐in‐organic” electrolyte. The chaotropic salt Zn(ClO₄)₂exploits the Hofmeister effect to promote the miscibility of immiscible liquid phases. Interactions between propylene carbonate and water restrict water activity and mitigate unfavorable reactions. This electrolyte facilitates preferential Zn (002) deposition and the formation of solid electrolyte interphase. Consequently, the “water‐in‐organic” electrolyte achieves a 99.5% Coulombic efficiency at 1 mA cm⁻²over 1000 cycles in Zn/Cu cells, and constant cycling over 1000 h in Zn/Zn symmetric cells. A Na_0.33V₂O₅/Zn battery exhibits impressive cycling stability with a capacity of 175 mAh g⁻¹for 800 cycles at 2 A g⁻¹. Additionally, this electrolyte enables sustainable cycling across a wide temperature range from −20 to 50 °C. The design of a “water‐in‐organic” electrolyte employing a chaotropic salt presents a potential strategy for high‐performance electrolytes in zinc‐ion batteries with a large stability window and a wide temperature range. 

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4. Vanillin: An Effective Additive to Improve the Longevity of Zn Metal Anode in a 30 m ZnCl ₂ Electrolyte

   https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.202301712  

   Hoang, David; Li, Yaqiong; Jung, Min Soo; Sandstrom, Sean K.; Scida, Alexis M.; Jiang, Heng; Gallagher, Trenton C.; Pollard, Brenden A.; Jensen, Rachel; Chiu, Nan‐Chieh; et al (November 2023, Advanced Energy Materials)

   Abstract It remains a challenge to design aqueous electrolytes to secure the complete reversibility of zinc metal anodes. The concentrated water‐in‐salt electrolytes, e.g., 30 m ZnCl₂, are promising candidates to address the challenges of the Zn metal anode. However, the pure 30 m ZnCl₂electrolyte fails to deliver a smooth surface morphology and a practically relevant Coulombic efficiency. Herein, it is reported that a small concentration of vanillin, 5 mg mL_water⁻¹, added to 30 m ZnCl₂transforms the reversibility of Zn metal anode by eliminating dendrites, lowering the Hammett acidity, and forming an effective solid electrolyte interphase. The presence of vanillin in the electrolyte enables the Zn metal anode to exhibit a high Coulombic efficiency of 99.34% at a low current density of 0.2 mA cm⁻², at which the impacts of the hydrogen evolution reaction are allowed to play out. Using this new electrolyte, a full cell Zn metal battery with an anode/cathode capacity (N/P) ratio of 2:1 demonstrates no capacity fading over 800 cycles. 

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5. Complex Structural Disorder in Thermoelectric Zintl Phases Eu ₂₁ M ₄ As ₁₈ ( M = Mn, Zn)

   https://doi.org/10.1002/zaac.202500070  

   Ishtiyak, Mohd; Watts, Spencer R; Pokhvata, Olha; Kandabadage, Thimira; Baranets, Sviatoslav (September 2025, Zeitschrift für anorganische und allgemeine Chemie)

   Ternary Zintl arsenides Eu₂₁Mn₄As₁₈, Eu₂₁Zn₄As₁₈, and quaternary solid solution Eu₂₁Mn₄As_15.4Sb_2.6have been synthesized and structurally characterized using single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. Eu₂₁Mn₄As₁₈and Eu₂₁Mn₄As_15.4Sb_2.6are reported here for the first time, whereas new structural insights are presented for the previously known Eu₂₁Zn₄As₁₈. All title compounds crystallize in the Sr₂₁Mn₄Sb₁₈structure type (space groupC2/m) and exhibit pronounced positional disorder affecting both cationic and anionic sites. This includes disorder on Eu atoms and As₂dimers, as well as splitM(M = Mn, Zn) sites within the anionic [M₈As₂₂]⁴⁸⁻clusters. Despite the disorder, the Zintl concept remains applicable to the novel Eu₂₁Mn₄As₁₈phase, and the charge‐balanced composition can be expressed as 2 × Eu₂₁Mn₄As₁₈= [Eu²⁺]₄₂{[Mn₈As₂₂]^48‐}{[As₂]^4‐}₃[As^3‐]₈. Electronic structure calculations performed on the disorder‐free model of Eu₂₁Zn₄As₁₈predict a bandgap of ≈1.1 eV. 

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