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As the global demand for safer, more sustainable and cost-effective energy storage grows, research is rapidly moving beyond lithium-ion chemistry. Zinc-, magnesium- and sodium-based systems are emerging as leading contenders, offering new pathways to overcome material scarcity, safety limitations and performance bottlenecks.

We’ve brought together a selection of must-read papers from Nanoscale Horizons and Nanoscale, showcasing how researchers are tackling long-standing challenges in next-generation electrochemical energy storage.

Designing safer zinc batteries through aqueous electrolyte innovation

One of the defining challenges in zinc-based energy storage is the instability and poor reversibility of Zn anodes in conventional aqueous electrolytes. While aqueous electrolyte systems offer clear advantages in safety and sustainability, they also introduce complications such as water-induced side reactions and uncontrolled zinc deposition.

Recent research is increasingly shifting attention toward electrolyte systems that do more than transport ions - they actively regulate interfacial chemistry and ion distribution to stabilise metal anodes.

To address the instability of zinc anodes in conventional aqueous systems, work published in Nanoscale Horizons introduces a biomacromolecule-based hydrogel electrolyte derived from natural materials, including sodium alginate and iota-carrageenan.

The hydrogel forms an ionically cross-linked network that restructures the local electrolyte environment, suppressing water reactivity while guiding uniform Zn deposition. This leads to highly reversible zinc plating/stripping behaviour and stable cycling performance in both coin and flexible pouch cells.

An ionically cross-linked composite hydrogel electrolyte based on natural biomacromolecules for sustainable zinc-ion batteries

This work aims to construct high-performance hydrogel electrolytes using low-cost natural materials, which may provide a solution for the application of ZIBs in flexible biocompatible devices.

Moving from electrolyte modification to metal anode interface engineering in magnesium batteries

The incompatibility of anodes, electrolytes, and cathodes remains one of the main obstacles of developing alternative metal-ion batteries. While electrolyte design is an excellent way to address the issue, researchers are also looking for other solutions. 

Magnesium offers attractive volumetric capacity and intrinsic safety, making it another promising candidate to replace Lithium in batteries. However, magnesium-ion batteries face an aggravated metal anode stability challenge, due to their tendency of forming a Mg2+ passivation layer in most organic electrolytes. 

This has driven interest in interphase engineering, where the anode surface is deliberately modified to regulate electrochemical behaviour and suppress degradation.

Research published in Nanoscale demonstrates a simple yet effective strategy to stabilise magnesium anodes through alloy electrodeposition, forming Mg–Sn and Mg–Bi protective layers directly on the Mg metal surface.

These alloy layers significantly reduce polarization and suppress dendrite formation, enabling ultra-stable cycling in symmetric cells and long-term performance in full cells.

High-efficiency electrodeposition of magnesium alloy-based anodes for ultra-stable rechargeable magnesium-ion batteries

This work provides an avenue for the design of practical and high-performance RMBs and beyond.

Engineering nanoscale confinement in sodium-ion battery anodes

Sodium-ion batteries are increasingly viewed as a scalable alternative to lithium-ion systems, particularly for grid-scale storage. However, achieving high energy density remains a major challenge.

A key strategy emerging in this area is precise control of nanoscale structure in carbon-based materials, where ion storage capacity is highly sensitive to pore geometry and defect chemistry.

Research published in Nanoscale Horizons introduces a strategy to engineer closed pore structures in biomass-derived hard carbon, enabling enhanced electrochemical sodium storage at low voltages.

By controlling microstructural parameters such as pore distribution and defect density, the authors demonstrate improved sodium clustering behaviour in closed pores, leading to a significant increase in plateau capacity.

Regulation of closed pores in hard carbon for enhanced electrochemical sodium storage

This work provides a new strategy for precisely regulating the microstructure of biomass-derived hard carbon for sodium-ion storage.

Hybrid materials design for fast ion transport in sodium-ion batteries

Alongside structural control, another major direction in sodium-ion battery research is the development of hybrid electrode materials, where multiple components are combined to overcome individual limitations such as poor conductivity or structural instability.

By integrating different materials, researchers can design systems components synergise leading to significant performance improvements. 

This research, published in Nanoscale presents a hollow spherical MoSeâ‚‚@MXene composite in which MoSeâ‚‚ nanoflakes are grown in situ on hollow MXene spheres.

The resulting architecture combines enhanced conductivity, structural stability, and abundant active sites, while the hollow morphology alleviates structural damage due to volume expansion during cycling. Together, these features enable high-capacity retention and excellent rate performance over extended cycling.

Synthesis of a hollow MoSeâ‚‚@MXene anode material for sodium-ion batteries

In this study, MoSeâ‚‚ nanoflakes were grown in situ on hollow MXene spheres via a hydrothermal method. The obtained hollow 3D spherical MoSeâ‚‚@MXene composite exhibits outstanding rate performance and cycling stability as the sodium-ion battery anode.

Unlocking customisability in zinc batteries through additive manufacturing 

As electrochemical performance improves, attention is increasingly shifting toward how batteries can be manufactured. For emerging applications such as wearables, miniaturised electronics, and integrated devices, electrode geometry and form factor are gaining importance alongside chemistry.

This has led to growing interest in the use of 3D-printing for energy storage systems, where electrode design can be tailored with precision.

This study, published in Nanoscale Horizons demonstrates the direct ink writing of layered VSâ‚‚ electrodes, enabling programmable manufacturing of aqueous zinc-ion batteries.

The authors formulate a novel electrically conductive ink based on layered VS2 micro flowers and used direct ink writing to create porous, electrochemically active structures with tunable mass loading. When combined with a water-in-salt electrolyte, the system also demonstrated improved stability against dissolution and oxidation typically associated with VSâ‚‚ in aqueous environments.

3D printing of layered vanadium disulfide for water-in-salt electrolyte zinc-ion batteries

This works paves the way towards programmable manufacturing of miniaturized aqueous batteries and the materials processing approach can be applied to different materials and battery systems to improve stability.

Where next for alternative metal-ion batteries?

Across zinc-, magnesium-, and sodium-based systems, the direction of travel is becoming increasingly clear: progress in metal-ion batteries is no longer defined by a single breakthrough material, but by the co-design of chemistry, interfaces, and architecture. From electrolytes that actively regulate metal deposition, to engineered interphases, porous carbons, and hybrid electrode structures, the field is moving toward increasingly integrated and tailored solutions.

What unites these advances is a shift in thinking - from treating batteries as static material systems to viewing them as dynamic, engineered environments where every component influences electrochemical behaviour.

Discover more research

You can find more research on alternative metal-ion batteries and related energy storage advances in our journals