In situ separator modification via CVD-derived N-doped carbon for highly reversible Zn metal anodes

Attention toward aqueous zinc-ion battery has soared recently due to its operation safety and environmental benignity. Nonetheless, dendrite formation and side reactions occurred at the anode side greatly hinder its practical application. Herein, we adopt direct plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition strategy to in situ grow N-doped carbon (NC) over commercial glass fiber separator targeting a highly stabilized Zn anode. The strong zincophilicity of such a new separator would reduce the nucleation overpotential of Zn and enhance the Zn-ion transference number, thereby alleviating side reactions. Symmetric cells equipped with NC-modified separator harvest a stable cycling for more than 1,100 h under 1 mA·cm⁻²/1 mAh·cm⁻². With the assistance of NC, the depth of discharge of Zn anode reaches as high as 42.7%. When assembled into full cells, the zinc-ion battery based on NC-modified separator could maintain 79% of its initial capacity (251 mAh·g⁻¹) at 5 A·g⁻¹ after 1,000 cycles.