Superstable Small-Molecule Quinone Cathode Enabled by Host–Guest Interactions for Fast-Kinetics Zinc-Organic Batteries at Low Temperature

Aqueous zinc-organic batteries, featuring safe aqueous electrolytes and cost-effective materials, demonstrate broad application prospects. However, small-molecule organic cathodes encounter critical challenges, including poor electronic conductivity and severe dissolution issues. Herein, a small-molecule quinone guest (sodium anthraquinone-2-sulfonaterationate, SAS) is incorporated with a conductive host (reduced graphene oxide, rGO) through noncovalent bonding to obtain a free-standing SAS@rGO electrode. Theoretical calculations and experimental characterizations indicate host–guest interactions prevent the dissolution of active material and facilitate electron transport. Furthermore, various in/ex situ characterizations reveal that SAS@rGO remains stable during cycling, maintaining a high capacity retention of 90.4% after 300 cycles even at 0.5 C. Moreover, 1,4-butyrolactone is adopted as cosolvent to break the hydrogen bonding network, ensuring rapid ion transport kinetics at low temperatures. Combining the principles of host–guest and solvation chemistry synergistically, the Zn//SAS@rGO battery achieves exceptional cycling stability for over 3000 cycles at 1 A g–1 and −40 °C.