• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.68 no.1
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• pp.15-19
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• 2024

• Ceramist
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.312-330
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• 2018

Energy storage/conversion has become crucial not only to meet the present energy demand but also more importantly to sustain the modern society. Particularly, electrical energy storage is critical not only to support electronic, vehicular and load-levelling applications but also to efficiently commercialize renewable energy resources such as solar and wind. While Li-ion batteries are being intensely researched for electric vehicle applications, there is a pressing need to seek for new battery chemistries aimed at stationary storage systems. In this aspect, Zn-ion batteries offer a viable option to be utilized for high energy and power density applications since every intercalated Zn-ion yields a concurrent charge transfer of two electrons and thereby high theoretical capacities can be realized. Furthermore, the simplicity of fabrication under open-air conditions combined with the abundant and less toxic zinc element makes aqueous Zn-ion batteries one of the most economical, safe and green energy storage technologies with prospective use for stationary grid storage applications. Also, Zn-ion batteries are very safe for next-generation technologies based on flexible, roll-up, wearable implantable devices the portable electronics market. Following this advantages, a wide range of approaches and materials, namely, cathodes, anodes and electrolytes have been investigated for Zn-ion batteries applications to date. Herein, we review the progresses and major advancements related to aqueous. Zn-ion batteries, facilitating energy storage/conversion via $Zn^{2+}$ (de)intercalation mechanism.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.9-18
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• 2013

Components of zinc-air battery and their problems are explained. Energy density of zinc air battery is superior to other commercial ones including Li-ion batteries. Cycle life of the zinc air batteries is poor because of irreversible redox reactions on both electrodes. In order to improve the performance of the zinc air battery, catalysts, passivation, and the new structure of electrodes should be developed to optimize several reactions in an electrode. Multidisciplinary efforts, such as mechanics, corrosion science, composite materials are necessary from the beginning of the research to obtain a meaningful product.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.159-163
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• 2023

Zinc-ion Batteries (ZIBs) are currently considered to be effective energy storage devices for wearable electronics because of their low cost and high safety. Indeed, ZIBs show high power density and safety compared with conventional lithium ion batteries (LIBs) and exhibit high energy density in comparison with supercapacitors (SCs). However, in spite of their advantages, further current collector development is needed to enhance the electrochemical performance of ZIBs. To design the optimized current collector for high performance ZIBs, a high quality graphene film is suggested here, with improved electrical conductivity by controlling the defects in the graphene film. The graphene film showed improved electrical conductivity and good electron transfer between the current collector and active material, which led to a high specific capacity of 346.3 mAh g^-1 at a current density of 100 mA g^-1, a high-rate performance with 116.3 mAh g^-1 at a current density of 2,000 mA g^-1, and good cycling stability (68.0 % after 100 cycles at a current density of 1,000 mA g^-1). The improved electrochemical performance is firmly because of the defects-controlled graphene film, leading to improved electrical conductivity and thus more efficient electron transfer between the current collector and active material.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.68-74
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• 2021

Zinc-ion Batteris (ZIBs) are recently being considered as energy storage devices due to their high specific capacity and high safety, and the abundance of zinc sources. Especially, ZIBs can overcome the drawbacks of conventional lithium ion batteris (LIBs), such as cost and safety issues. However, in spite of their advantages, the cathode materials under development are required to improve performance of ZIBs, because the capacity and cycling stability of ZIBs are mainly influenced by the cathode materials. To design optimized cathode materials for high performance ZIBs, a novel manganese oxide (MnO2) coated graphite sheet is suggested herein with improved zinc-ion diffusion capability thanks to the uniformly decorated MnO2 on the graphite sheet surface. Especially, to optimize MnO2 on the graphite sheet surface, amounts of percursors are regulated. The optimized MnO2 coated graphite sheet shows a superior zinc-ion diffusion ability and good electrochemical performance, including high specific capacity of 330.8 mAh g-1 at current density of 0.1 A g-1, high-rate performance with 109.4 mAh g-1 at a current density of 2.0 A g-1, and remarkable cycling stability (82.2 % after 200 cycles at a current density of 1.0 A g-1). The excellent electrochemical performance is due to the uniformly decorated MnO2 on the graphite sheet surface, which leads to excellent zinc-ion diffusion ability. Thus, our study can provide a promising strategy for high performance next-generation ZIBs in the near future.

• Journal of the Korean Electrochemical Society
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.161-171
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• 2015

High-yield zinc germanium oxide ($Zn_2GeO_4$) and zinc tin oxide ($Zn_2SnO_4$) nanowires were synthesized using a hydrothermal method. We investigated the electrochemical properties of these $Zn_2GeO_4$ and $Zn_2SnO_4$ nanowires as anode materials of lithium ion battery and sodium ion battery. The $Zn_2GeO_4$ and $Zn_2SnO_4$ nanowires showed excellent cycling performance of the lithium ion battery, with a maximum capacity of 1021 mAh/g and 692 mAh/g after 50 cycles, respectively, with a high Coulomb efficiency of 98 %. For the first time, we examined the cycling performance of $Zn_2GeO_4$ and $Zn_2SnO_4$ nanowires for sodium ion batteries. The maximum capacity is 168 mAh/g and 200 mAh/g after 50 cycles, respectively, with a high Coulomb efficiency of 97%. These nanowires are expected as promising electrode materials for the development of high-performance lithium ion batteries as well as sodium ion batteries.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.33 no.12
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• pp.550-557
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• 2023

In zinc-air batteries, the gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) is an important factor for improving performance. The rigid physical properties of polyvinyl alcohol reduce ionic conductivity, which degrades the performance of the batteries. Zinc acetate is an effective additive that can increase ionic conductivity by weakening the bonding structure of polyvinyl alcohol. In this study, polymer electrolytes were prepared by mixing polyvinyl alcohol and zinc acetate dihydride. The material properties of the prepared polymer electrolytes were analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Also, Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used to calculate ionic conductivity. The electrolyte resistances of GPE, 0.2 GPE, 0.4 GPE, and 0.6 GPE were 0.394, 0.338, 0.290, and 0.213 Ω, respectively. In addition, 0.6 GPE delivered 0.023 S/cm high ionic conductivity. Among all of the polymer electrolytes tested, 0.6 GPE showed enhanced cycle life performance and the highest specific discharge capacity of 11.73 mAh/cm² at 10 mA. These results verified that 0.6 GPE improves the performance of zinc-air batteries.

• Electronics and Telecommunications Trends
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.83-94
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• 2024

There have been continuous requirements for developing more reliable energy storage systems that could address unsolved problems in conventional lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) and thus be a proper option for large-scale applications like energy storage system (ESS). As a promising solution, aqueous metal-ion batteries (AMIBs) where water is used as a primary electrolyte solvent, have been emerging owing to excellent safety, cost-effectiveness, and eco-friendly feature. Particularly, AMIBs adopting mutivalence metal ions (Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Al³⁺) as mobile charge carriers has been paid much attention because of their abundance on globe and high volumetric capacity. In this research trend review, one of the most popular AMIBs, zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs), will be discussed. Since it is well-known that ZIBs suffer from various (electro) chemical/physical side reactions, we introduce the challenges and recent advances in the study of ZIBs mainly focusing on widening the electrochemical window of aqueous electrolytes as well as improving electrochemical properties of cathode, and anode materials.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.32 no.9
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• pp.3333-3337
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• 2011

$ZnMn_2O_4$ has been prepared by a mechanochemical process using a mixture of $Mn_2O_3$ and ZnO as starting materials, and investigated as a possible anode material for lithium-ion batteries. The phase evolution and morphologies of the ball-milled and annealed powders are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with energy dispersive microanalysis (EDX), respectively. The solid-state reaction for the formation of $ZnMn_2O_4$, under the given experimental conditions, is achieved in a short time (30 min), and the prepared samples exhibit excellent electrochemical performances including an enhanced initial coulombic efficiency, high reversible capacity, and stable capacity retention with cycling.

• Electronics and Telecommunications Trends
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.128-136
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• 2023

Lithium accounts for only 0.0017% of the earth crust, and it is produced in geographically limited regions such as South America, the United States, and China. Since the first half of 2017, the price of lithium has been continuously increasing, and with the rapid adoption of electric vehicles, lithium resources are expected to be depleted in the near future. In addition, economic blocs worldwide face intensifying scenarios such as competition for technological supremacy and protectionism of domestic industries. Consequently, Korea is deepening its dependence on China for core materials and is vulnerable to the influence of the United States Inflation Reduction Act. We analyze post-lithium secondary battery technologies that rely on more earth-abundant elements to replace lithium, whose production is limited to specific regions. Specifically, we focus on the technological status and issues of sodium-ion, zinc-air, and redox-flow batteries. In addition, research trends in post-lithium secondary batteries are examined. Post-lithium secondary batteries seem promising for large-capacity energy storage systems while reducing the costs of raw materials compared with existing lithium-based technologies.