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Prokaryote-Inspired and Derived Oxygen Reduction Electrocatalysts for Ultra-Long-Life Zn–Air Batteries

Research Abstract

The design of efficient oxygen reductionreaction (ORR) catalyst with fast kinetics is crucial for high-performance Zn–air batteries but remains a challenge. Herein, inspired by the oxidative respiratory chain of prokaryotes, an ORR electrocatalyst is reported by mimicking the microstructure of Staphylococcus aureus and simitaneously utilizing this low-cost cell as the precursor. The catalyst consists of MnO2/Co2P nanocomposites support on Staphylococcus aureus-derived hollow spherical carbon, which not only accelerates electron transfer for improved intrinsic reaction kinetics, but also creates an OH concentration gradient for enhanced mass transfer efficiency. Such bio-inspired and derived ORR catalyst enables rechargeable Zn–air batteries with ultra-long cycling stability of more than 2800 h at a high capacity of 810.3 mAh g−1, which is superior among the reported bio-derived oxygen catalysts. A flexible Zn–air battery based on the bio-inspired and derived catalyst is also assembled, and it well integrates with a wireless flexible electronic skin.

Research Authors
Wenbo Zhao, Jipeng Chen, Ximeng Liu, Yong Gao, Jie Pu, Qinghe Cao, Ting Meng, Abdelnaby M Elshahawy, Salah A Makhlouf, Cao Guan
Research Date
Research Department
Research Journal
Advanced Energy Materials
Research Pages
2405594
Research Publisher
Wiley-VCH GmbH
Research Rank
International Q1
Research Vol
15
Research Website
https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.202405594
Research Year
2025