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Vol. 18 (2026)

Polyhydroxy Hydrogel Electrolyte with In Situ Tuned Interface Chemistry for Ultra-Stable Biosensing-Compatible Zinc Batteries

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-025-02061-z
Fengjiao Guo
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Chunjiang Jin
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Hongyu Mi
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Ziqiang Liu
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Bo Xu
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Wenhan Jia
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Xinjiang University, Urumqi 830017, People’s Republic of China
Guozhao Fang
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Key Laboratory of Electronic Packaging and Advanced Functional Materials of Hunan Province, Central South University, Changsha 410083, People’s Republic of China
Jieshan Qiu
State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Beijing 100029, People’s Republic of China

Corresponding Author: Jieshan Qiu

qiujs@mail.buct.edu.cn

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 18 (2026), Article Number: 217

Abstract

Aqueous zinc batteries (ZBs) represent a promising sustainable and safe energy storage technology, yet their widespread adoption is impeded by persistent interfacial instabilities at Zn anodes. This study reports a polyhydroxy hydrogel electrolyte (PASHE) with in situ regulated interface chemistry suitable for biosensing compatible ZBs. Benefiting from the well-integrated interface via in situ strategy, the hydroxyl-rich L-sorbose in PASHE establishes kinetically favorable Zn2+ transport pathways and regulates interfacial ion-adsorption hierarchies, synergistically homogenizing ion distribution and promoting preferential crystallographic orientation. Furthermore, PASHE constructs a low water-activity microenvironment via interfacial preferential adsorption, oxygen-rich solid electrolyte interphase evolution, and Zn2+ solvation sheath reconstruction. These effects enable Zn (002)-textured electrodeposition and inhibitory side reactions, achieving dendrite-free Zn plating/stripping with exceptional stability (3300 h in Zn//Zn cells) and near-perfect reversibility (average coulombic efficiency of 99.6% over 1200 cycles in Zn//Cu cells). This strategy delivers unprecedented cyclability in flexible Zn//I2 batteries (94.9% retention after 9000 cycles) and Zn-ion hybrid capacitors (98.0% after 43,000 cycles). Notably, we demonstrate an integrated biosensing platform that couples PASHE-based biosensor with cascaded Zn//I2 batteries, realizing real-time monitoring of physiological signals and biomechanical motions. This work proposes dual strategies of in situ approach and functional additive to design hydrogel electrolytes, bridging high-performance ZBs with next-generation biosensing technologies.


Highlights:
1 Polyhydroxy hydrogel electrolyte enables in situ dual regulations of Zn-electrolyte interfacial chemistry and bulk electrolyte properties.
2 Reversible Zn anodes with exceptional cycling stability and perfect coulombic efficiency are achieved.
3 A self-powered biosensing platform that integrates Zn//I2 batteries with hydrogel sensor achieves real-time physiological monitoring.

Keywords

Hydrogel electrolyte Polyhydroxy additive Interface chemistry Zinc batteries Biosensing system
Guo, Fengjiao, Chunjiang Jin, Hongyu Mi, Ziqiang Liu, Bo Xu, Wenhan Jia, Guozhao Fang, and Jieshan Qiu. 2026. “Polyhydroxy Hydrogel Electrolyte With In Situ Tuned Interface Chemistry for Ultra-Stable Biosensing-Compatible Zinc Batteries”. Nano-Micro Letters 18 (January):217. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-025-02061-z.
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