Biomass-templated strategy to synthesize Fe₂P/Co₂P heterojunction bifunctional electrocatalyst for high performance flexible zinc-air batteries

Flexible Zn-air batteries (ZABs) are considered one of the most promising energy storage systems in wearable electronic devices. The key component in the flexible ZABs is the air cathode, which hosts the reversible electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) to attain long-term stability. In the present work, combining the advantage of the electrospinning technique and biomass-derived heteroatomic porous carbon, Fe₂P/Co₂P heterojunctions supported on N, P co-doped porous carbon are prepared, exhibiting excellent electrocatalytic OER/ORR performances, which is better than the commercial electrocatalysts based on noble metals. Consequently, the flexible aqueous ZABs as fabricated present remarkable charge and discharge rates, power density, volumetric energy density, folding durability, as well as long-term operational life. By initiating a novel route toward the design and development of air cathode electrode materials, this work paves the way for the practical deployment of flexible ZABs.