Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 5, 2026
06:58
Zinc-Sponge Battery Electrodes that Suppress Dendrites
Published on: September 29, 2020
Reversible Zn//H2 batteries enabled by Mn-Ov-Co dual-site relay
Miao Gao1, Mingjie Jia1, Zhenyu Wang1
1Department of Chemistry, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, People's Republic of China. sunhb@mail.neu.edu.cn.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|July 30, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a novel zinc-hydrogen battery using a unique catalyst. This breakthrough offers a safe and efficient solution for on-demand hydrogen storage and electricity generation.
Area of Science:
- Electrochemistry
- Materials Science
- Catalysis
Background:
- Hydrogen storage presents significant challenges for energy applications.
- Existing catalysts often face limitations due to scaling relations between key reaction steps.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a new zinc-hydrogen (Zn//H2) battery system.
- To overcome hydrogen storage bottlenecks using an advanced catalyst.
Main Methods:
- Development of an asymmetric manganese-oxygen-cobalt (Mn-Ov-Co) catalyst.
- Utilizing a dual-site relay mechanism to decouple water dissociation and hydrogen adsorption.
Main Results:
- The catalyst breaks traditional scaling relations for hydrogen evolution.
- Achieved a high exchange current density of 0.45 mA cm-2, surpassing platinum/carbon (Pt/C).
- Demonstrated catalyst stability for over 50 hours.
Conclusions:
- The developed Zn//H2 battery with the asymmetric Mn-Ov-Co catalyst enables safe, on-demand hydrogen-electricity storage.
- This approach offers a promising alternative to conventional hydrogen storage methods.
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