A Rechargeable Zn‐Redox Battery for Concurrent Electricity Generation and The‐Whole‐Process Chemical Production

The present work develops a 4-nitrobenzyl alcohol (4-NBA)-assisted rechargeable Zn-redox battery for concurrent electricity generation and the-whole-process chemical production, which is driven by an internal electric field-enhanced NiSe─Cu₂Se/NF electrocatalyst. This dual functionality significantly expands the versatility of Zn-based batteries, paving the way for new avenues in energy storage and chemical production.

Abstract

The rechargeable Zn-redox battery represents a promising, efficient, and sustainable energy storage technology. Herein, a novel 4-nitrobenzyl alcohol (4-NBA)-assisted rechargeable Zn-redox battery, driven by NiSe─Cu₂Se/NF bifunctional electrocatalysts is developed. The different redox activities of ─NO₂ and ─OH groups in 4-NBA allow redox conversion for chemical production during the whole discharge/charge process, maximizing the economic value of battery technologies. Detailed charge analyses indicate that the internal electric field within the NiSe─Cu₂Se heterostructure modulates the d-band center, optimizes the adsorption/desorption strength of intermediates, and reduces the reaction energy barriers during the redox conversion of 4-NBA. This bifunctional NiSe─Cu₂Se electrocatalyst enables the selective conversion of 4-NBA to 4-aminobenzyl alcohol during the discharge process and to 4-nitrobenzoic acid during the charge process, with Faradaic efficiencies above 96%. Consequently, the 4-NBA-assisted rechargeable Zn-redox battery achieves a high power energy density of 16.13 mW cm⁻² and maintains a stable yield rate of 15.92 µmol h⁻¹ cm⁻² for 4-aminobenzyl alcohol and 22.84 µmol h⁻¹ cm⁻² for 4-nitrobenzoic acid. This work presents an appealing strategy for integrating energy storage with the-whole-process chemical production, paving the way for developing multifunctional energy systems.