Nonsolvent-Induced Phase Separation pPAN Separators for Dendrite-Free Rechargeable Aluminum Batteries

Rechargeable aluminum batteries (RAB) are a promising energy storage system with high safety, long cycle life, and low cost. However, the strong corrosiveness of chloroaluminate ionic liquid electrolytes (ILEs) severely limits the development of RAB separators. Herein, a nonsolvent-induced phase separation strategy was applied to fabricate the pPAN (poly(vinyl alcohol)-modified polyacrylonitrile) separator, which exhibits prominent chemical and electrochemical stability in ILEs. The pPAN separator, owing to its uniform pore size distribution and strong electronegativity with a zeta potential of about -10.20 mV, can effectively inhibit the growth of dendrites. Benefiting from the good ion conductivity (6.38 mS cm