| Abstract Scope |
Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) are promising for safe, low-cost energy storage, yet their cycling stability is limited by Zn dendrites, corrosion, and parasitic reactions. Here, we propose a grain-orientation transition strategy to stabilize Zn metal anodes via thermal annealing and roll-pressing, producing Zn foils with an initial (101)-preferred texture that gradually transforms into the stable (002) basal orientation during cycling. EBSD, BC imaging, and pole figure analyses confirm that annealing-driven grain coarsening and deformation-induced grain refinement regulate the microstructure and texture evolution. Compared with conventional (002)-oriented or fine-grained Zn, the engineered (101)-textured Zn enables uniform, compact Zn deposition and mitigates morphological degradation. As a result, symmetric cells cycle stably for >500 h at 2 mA cm⁻² (2 mAh cm⁻²) and >1200 h at 1 mA cm⁻², while full cells with an I₂@ACC cathode sustain >900 cycles at 1 A g⁻¹ with reduced voltage hysteresis. |