Dendrite-Free Zinc Anodes via a Three-Dimensional Ti₂AlC Coating for High-Performance Zinc-Ion Batteries

Zinc-ion batteries have emerged as promising candidates for large-scale energy storage applications due to their low cost and high safety. However, the growth of zinc dendrites during Zn2+ deposition remains a critical obstacle to their commercialization. In this work, we first screened a more zincophilic MAX-phase material, Ti2AlC, through theoretical calculations of various common MAX-phase materials, and then developed a three-dimensional (3D) Ti2AlC MAX-phase coating on zinc metal (denoted as 3D-Ti2AlC@Zn) as an artificial intermediate phase to regulate the distribution of Zn2+ during plating/stripping. The MAX phase provides abundant active sites that attract Zn2+, while its 3D porous conductive network promotes uniform zinc deposition and suppresses dendrite formation, leading to enhanced cycling stability in aqueous zinc-ion batteries. Benefiting from the protective 3D-Ti2AlC coating, the symmetric cell exhibits an extended lifespan of over 1800 h at 1 mA/cm2. Moreover, full cells with MnO2 cathodes achieve higher specific capacity and improved stability compared to those using bare zinc anodes when they are operated at 2 A/g. This approach offers a viable strategy for developing durable zinc anodes, potentially accelerating the application of zinc-ion batteries in energy storage systems.