A Rechargeable Zinc–Copper Voltaic Battery Built from Cost-Effective Electrodes and Electrolytes

The zinc–copper (Zn-Cu) voltaic battery is the first battery made in human history, but the Cu²⁺ dissolution issue leads to the reaction’s irreversibility. To tackle this challenge, solid-state electrolytes, ion exchange membranes, and functional electrolytes have been proposed to mitigate the Cu²⁺ dissolution; however, these approaches incur limitations like cell complexity, high cost, and anode corrosion. Herein, we develop a simple yet effective strategy to mitigate Cu²⁺ dissolution and build a rechargeable voltaic battery from cost-effective materials, including commercially available micro-copper powders and non-corrosive zinc acetate electrolyte. Importantly, the near-neutral Zn(Ac)₂ electrolyte provides some amounts of hydroxide and facilitates the Cu₂O/Cu solid–solid conversion reaction, thereby inhibiting the generation of soluble Cu²⁺ ions. As a result, the Zn-Cu battery exhibits a reversible capacity of ~130 mAh g⁻¹, a feasible voltage of 0.87 V, and a stable cycling life over 100 cycles. Our work provides a feasible strategy for developing rechargeable and cost-effective Zn-Cu batteries.

# Production of electric energy or power. Powerplants. Central stations # Industrial electrochemistry # rechargeable batteries # voltaic batteries # micro-sized copper # zinc acetate # conversion reaction

Jose Fernando Florez Gomez, Songyang Chang, Irfan Ullah, et al. (2026). "A Rechargeable Zinc–Copper Voltaic Battery Built from Cost-Effective Electrodes and Electrolytes". Batteries. https://doi.org/10.3390/batteries12060215