Effect of Adding Carbon Black to a Porous Zinc Anode in a Zinc-Air Battery

Zinc-air batteries were fabricated using porous zinc anodes with various concentrations of Super P carbon black additive. The introduction of Super P significantly improved the electrochemical performance of the batteries. The specific discharge capacity and power density of the Zn anode with 2 wt% Super P anode was 776 mA h g−1 and 20 mW cm−2, respectively. The batteries also exhibited good durability and stability at an open circuit voltage maintained at approximately 1.4 V. The bridging between Zn powders by Super P may explain the improved electrochemical performance of the batteries. Morphological images and structural properties were also analyzed to support these observations.