Optimizing mechanical properties and ionic conductivity of hybrid hydrogel electrolytes for flexible zinc-ion batteries
- 1Aalborg University
Abstract
Wearable electronics require energy storage systems that combine mechanical flexibility, safety, and electrochemical performance, making aqueous zinc-ion batteries using hydrogel polymer electrolytes (HPEs) a promising approach. However, achieving hydrogels with both high mechanical toughness and ionic conductivity remains a major challenge. Herein, a zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine methylacrylate)-tetraethylene glycol dimethacrylate (PSBMA-EG) hydrogel was combined with a silica network to form an organic/inorganic hybrid electrolyte. The results demonstrated the successful synthesis and cross-linking of the organic and inorganic networks using 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TMSPMA) as a coupling agent. The acrylate-to-silica ratio (Ac:Si), as the composition-dependency, was varied to investigate its effect on the morphology, swelling behaviour, and glass transition temperature of the obtained hydrogels. Typically, increasing the Ac:Si ratio resulted in more homogeneous and porous structures with higher water uptake. The mechanical and electrochemical properties were evaluated using uniaxial compression and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), respectively. The HPE with the optimized combination of properties was obtained at an Ac:Si ratio of 2:1, exhibiting a toughness of 152.41 ± 30.12 kJ m –3 and an ionic conductivity of 118.01 ± 28.04 mS cm –1 .
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BibTeX
@misc{lauritzen2026optimizing,
title = {{Optimizing mechanical properties and ionic conductivity of hybrid hydrogel electrolytes for flexible zinc-ion batteries}},
author = {Iben Edelbo Lauritzen and Jonas Klarskov Nielsen and Patrick Ullits Pilgaard and Phillip Dyran and Hanne Colding Bundgaard and Mikkel Vinkler Kristensen and Xinxin Xiao and Donghong Yu},
howpublished = {ChemRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.26434/chemrxiv.15009520/v1},
url = {https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009520/v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Optimizing mechanical properties and ionic conductivity of hybrid hydrogel electrolytes for flexible zinc-ion batteries
AU - Iben Edelbo Lauritzen
AU - Jonas Klarskov Nielsen
AU - Patrick Ullits Pilgaard
AU - Phillip Dyran
AU - Hanne Colding Bundgaard
AU - Mikkel Vinkler Kristensen
AU - Xinxin Xiao
AU - Donghong Yu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/28
PB - ChemRxiv
DO - 10.26434/chemrxiv.15009520/v1
UR - https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009520/v1
AB - Wearable electronics require energy storage systems that combine mechanical flexibility, safety, and electrochemical performance, making aqueous zinc-ion batteries using hydrogel polymer electrolytes (HPEs) a promising approach. However, achieving hydrogels with both high mechanical toughness and ionic conductivity remains a major challenge. Herein, a zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine methylacrylate)-tetraethylene glycol dimethacrylate (PSBMA-EG) hydrogel was combined with a silica network to form an organic/inorganic hybrid electrolyte. The results demonstrated the successful synthesis and cross-linking of the organic and inorganic networks using 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TMSPMA) as a coupling agent. The acrylate-to-silica ratio (Ac:Si), as the composition-dependency, was varied to investigate its effect on the morphology, swelling behaviour, and glass transition temperature of the obtained hydrogels. Typically, increasing the Ac:Si ratio resulted in more homogeneous and porous structures with higher water uptake. The mechanical and electrochemical properties were evaluated using uniaxial compression and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), respectively. The HPE with the optimized combination of properties was obtained at an Ac:Si ratio of 2:1, exhibiting a toughness of 152.41 ± 30.12 kJ m –3 and an ionic conductivity of 118.01 ± 28.04 mS cm –1 .
ER -