Tetraethyl orthosilicate steam induced silicon-based anticorrosion film enables highly reversible zinc metal anodes for zinc-iodine batteries

Zinc (Zn) metal anodes are badly troubled by the challenges of notorious dendrites and corrosion reactions from H2O and I3− ions during stripping/plating processes, impeding the commercial application of Zn-iodine (I2) batteries. In this work, we report a novel strategy for the in-situ construction of uniform silicon-based anticorrosion films on Zn metal anodes (Zn@Ts) through the treatment of tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) steam on Zn disks for different times. TEOS can be decomposed into three-dimensional (3D) porous inorganic frameworks (SiOxCy) filled with organic polymers (SiCxOyHz) on Zn metal at 180 °C in autoclave. On the one hand, silicon-based composite layers can protect Zn metal from direct contact with aqueous electrolyte and stabilize the electrode/electrolyte interface, which hinders the occurrence of hydrogen evolution as well as corrosion reactions. On the other hand, 3D macroporous structure not only provides strong mechanical framework but also guides Zn2+ flux to homogenize Zn2+ concentration and realize uniform Zn nucleation/deposition, which contributes to suppress the growth of Zn dendrites. Zn@Ts symmetric batteries exhibit better cycling life of 5000 h comparing with bare Zn at 2 mA cm−2 and 2 mA h cm−2. Zn–I2 full-cells can achieve 89 mA h g−1 and 93% capacity retention after 20000 cycles. [Display omitted] •TEOS steam was used to treat Zn metal to form silicon-based anticorrosion films.•Silicon-based films suppress the corrosion of H2O and I3− in aqueous electrolyte.•Inorganic/organic components in anticorrosion films restrain Zn dendrite growth.•The protected Zn metal anodes can achieve ultra-long lifespan of 5000 h.•Zn–I2 full-cells can reach 93% capacity retention after 20000 cycles.