Jahn–Teller Distortion Induced Mn2+‐Rich Cathode Enables Optimal Flexible Aqueous High‐Voltage Zn‐Mn Batteries

Although one of the most promising aqueous batteries, all Zn-Mn systems suffer from Zn dendrites and the low-capacity Mn4+/Mn3+ process (readily leading to the occurrence of Jahn-Teller distortion, which in turn causes structural collapse and voltage/capacity fading). Here, the Mn3+ reconstruction and disproportionation are exploited to prepare the stable, Mn2+-rich manganese oxides on carbon-cloth (CMOs) in a discharged state through an inverted design, which promotes reversible Mn2+/Mn4+ kinetics and mitigates oxygen-related redox activity. Such a 1.65 V Mn2+-rich cathode enable constructing a 2.2 V Zn-Mn battery, providing a high area capacity of 4.16 mA h cm-2 (25 mA h cm-2 for 10 mL electrolyte) and superior 4000-cycle stability. Moreover, a flexible hybrid 2.7 V Zn-Mn battery is constructed using 2-pH hydrogel electrolytes to demonstrate excellent practicality and stability. A further insight has been gained to the commercial application of aqueous energy storage devices toward low-cost, high safety, and excellent energy density.