Improvement of electrochemical performance with amphoteric surfactants for Al anode of Al-air battery in alkaline system

Abstract

This work reports the inhibition effects of two amphoteric surfactants, betaine (BS) and dodecyl dimethyl betaine (BS-12), as additive in 4 M NaOH for Al-air battery. The H₂ gas evolution test, the electrochemical measurement, the morphology analysis and FT-IR spectra are used to investigate the inhibition effects of the additives. The galvanostatic discharge test is conducted to evaluate the discharge performance of the half-cell on the anode side. It indicates that both additives suppress self-corrosion of Al alloy anode. The additives also act as potential battery stabilizer and the anodes have higher utilization efficiency. The action mechanism of amphoteric surfactants is proposed based on the different molecule structure.