A multifunctional protective layer with biomimetic ionic channel suppressing dendrite and side reactions on zinc metal anodes.

A multifunctional graphitic carbon nitride (GCN) protective layer with bionic ion channels and high stability is prepared to inhibit dendrite growth and side reactions on zinc (Zn) metal anodes. The high electronegativity of the nitrogen-containing organic groups (NOGs) in the GCN layer can effectively promote the dissociation of solvated Zn2+ and its rapid transportation in bionic ion channels via a hopping mechanism. In addition, this GCN layer exhibits excellent mechanical strength to suppress the growth of Zn dendrites and the volume expansion of Zn metal anodes during the plating process. Consequently, the electrodeposited Zn presents a uniform and densely packed morphology with negligible side-product accumulation. As a result, the half-cell composed of the Cu-GCN anode can deliver a remarkable long-term cycling performance of 1000 h at 0.5 mA cm-2 and 0.25 mAh cm-2. A full cell assembled with MnO2 cathode also displays improved long-term cycling performance (150 cycles at 200 mA g-1) when the Cu-GCN@Zn composite anode is applied. This work deepens our understanding of the kinetics of ion migration in the interface layer and paves the way for next-generation high energy-density Zn-metal batteries (ZMBs).