High-performance nickel-zinc battery composed of SiC-coated zinc anode and MoCoCu-P coated nickel foam cathode

A high-performance nickel-zinc alkaline battery comprising a SiC-coated Zn anode and MoCoCu-P medium-entropy alloy-coated nickel foam cathode is designed and fabricated. The battery shows a large areal capacity 4.0 mAh cm⁻² (15.0 mA cm⁻²), and excellent cyclability for 45 h (areal capacity 1.5 mAh cm⁻² at 60.0 mA cm⁻²). The energy density and power density are 6.25 (4.41) mWh cm⁻² and 31.1 (60.2) mW cm⁻², respectively, at a current density of 15 (40) mA cm⁻². The outstanding properties of the Ni-Zn alkaline battery stem from the improved Zn plating/stripping process through SiC coating on Zn anode, synergistic effects rendered by the different ingredients, as well as the hybrid redox process of Ni and Cu for medium-entropy alloy-coated nickel foam cathode.