Synthesis of Hollow Polyaniline Nanospheres <i>via</i> Surface Tension‐Guided Double Emulsion System for Zn Carriers in Aqueous Batteries
Abstract
ABSTRACT Hollow mesoporous architectures present new opportunities for electrode design, yet conventional syntheses remain hampered by tedious hard‐template or unstable soft‐templates. Herein, a surface tension‐guided double‐emulsion template strategy is reported for the one‐step synthesis of uniform hollow polyaniline (PANI) nanospheres. Distinct from disordered emulsions, this double emulsion architecture features a central monomer droplet stabilized by a discrete intermediate micellar layer. By precisely modulating the solvent surface tension, the sizes of the hollow nanospheres are finely tuned, achieving diameters of 130–500 nm, cavities of 70–300 nm, and shell thicknesses of 30–80 nm. The resulting hollow PANI host creates a synergistic mechanism to regulate zinc deposition: chemically, the abundant nitrogen sites reduce the nucleation energy barrier; geometrically, the concave interior surface induces a negative curvature effect that enriches zinc ions, thereby guiding preferential deposition within the cavity. Capitalizing on these merits, the zinc‐preloaded hollow PANI anode exhibits exceptional stability and utilization. When assembled into full cells, this lightweight host enables a high specific capacity of 273 mAh g −1 while achieving a remarkably low negative‐to‐positive (N/P) ratio of 1.91. This work demonstrates that the double‐emulsion‐engineered hollow architecture is a promising route for developing high‐energy‐density, lightweight carriers for aqueous zinc batteries.
Article Details
Authors (8)
Jie Zhang
Gaoyang Li
Jiahao Chen
Spin-X Institute, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory of Optoelectronic and Magnetic Functional Materials, State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices
Xingjin Li
Laboratory of Advanced Materials Aqueous Battery Center Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials Shanghai Wusong Laboratory of Materials Science College of Smart Materials and Future Energy Fudan University Shanghai P. R. China
Tingting Ren
College of Chemistry and Materials, Department of Chemistry, Department of Macromolecular Science, Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials (2011-ChEM)
Tiancong Zhao
Department of Chemistry, Shanghai Stomatological Hospital & School of Stomatology, State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials
Dongliang Chao
Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Aqueous Battery Center, College of Smart Materials and Future Energy
Dongyuan Zhao
Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Molecular Catalysis and Innovative Materials, State Key Laboratory of Porous Materials for Separation and Conversion, Fudan University, 220 Handan, Shanghai 200433, P. R. China