Issue

Vol. 18 (2026)

Bioinspired Hierarchical Hydrogel Electrolyte for Ultralong-Life Flexible Zinc-Ion Batteries

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02246-0
Ran Wang
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Qian Gao
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Runhai Wu
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Yongqi Mi
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Shaopei Yang
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Hongxiao Wang
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Ting Wan
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China
Sehrish Gull
Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Tianjin Key Lab for Rare Earth Materials and Applications, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center (RECAST), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, People’s Republic of China
Kefeng Xie
School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou Jiaotong University, Lanzhou 730070, People’s Republic of China
Guankui Long
Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Tianjin Key Lab for Rare Earth Materials and Applications, Renewable Energy Conversion and Storage Center (RECAST), School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nankai University, Tianjin 300350, People’s Republic of China
Pengcheng Du
State Key Laboratory of Natural Product Chemistry and Institute of Polymer Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, People’s Republic of China

Corresponding Author: Pengcheng Du

dupch@lzu.edu.cn

Nano-Micro Letters, Vol. 18 (2026), Article Number: 399

Abstract

Hydrogel electrolytes are pivotal for flexible zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) yet suffer from an intrinsic trade-off between mechanical robustness and ionic conductivity. Herein, drawing inspiration from the “adhesion-conduction” architecture of spider webs, we developed a hierarchical hydrogel electrolyte (MTP) by incorporating tannic acid (TA)-modified MXene nanosheets (MT) into a polyacrylamide (PAM) skeleton to construct uniform 3D ion-conductive pathways. This bioinspired hierarchy serves a dual function: The PAM framework ensures mechanical integrity, while the MT network creates directed low-resistance channels for Zn2+ transport. Specifically, the dense array of polar groups on MXene and phenolic hydroxyls on TA act as “sticky sites”, which accelerate desolvation kinetics and homogenize Zn2+ flux. Consequently, the MTP electrolyte achieves an impressive ionic conductivity of 27.69 mS cm−1 and a high Zn2+ transference number of 0.833. Enabled by this design, Zn//Zn symmetric cells demonstrate an ultralong lifespan of 4600 h (> 6 months) at 0.5 mA cm−2/0.5 mAh cm−2. Furthermore, Zn//Z-VO full cells exhibit outstanding cyclability, retaining 74.5% capacity after 2000 cycles at 2 A g−1 and maintaining durable operation for over 10,000 cycles at 5 A g−1. This work successfully translates a biological blueprint into a practical strategy for resolving the kinetic and stability challenges in high-performance flexible ZIBs.


Highlights:
1 Drawing inspiration from the “adhesion-conduction” architecture of spider webs, a hierarchical hydrogel electrolyte (MTP) is developed with uniform 3D ion-conductive pathways.
2 Specific “sticky sites” on the MXene/tannic acid network facilitate superior electrochemical properties, including a high Zn2+ transference number of 0.833 and ionic conductivity of 27.69 mS cm−1.
3 This strategy enables stable Zn anodes with an impressive lifespan of 4600 h (>6 months) and empowers flexible full cells with outstanding cyclability over 10,000 cycles.

Keywords

Zinc-ion battery Hydrogel electrolyte MXene Hierarchical structure Zn2 rapid transport channel
Wang, Ran, Qian Gao, Runhai Wu, Yongqi Mi, Shaopei Yang, Hongxiao Wang, Ting Wan, Sehrish Gull, Kefeng Xie, Guankui Long, and Pengcheng Du. 2026. “Bioinspired Hierarchical Hydrogel Electrolyte for Ultralong-Life Flexible Zinc-Ion Batteries”. Nano-Micro Letters 18 (June):399. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-026-02246-0.
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