Screening and assessing vanadium oxide cathodes for zinc-ion batteries: A multi-criteria ranking and techno-economic analysis

Vanadium oxide-based cathodes are considered as one of the promising materials for aqueous zinc-ion batteries (AZIBs) due to their high specific capacity and structural flexibility. However, their widespread adoption is limited by cycling stability, low charge/discharge rate, and difficulties in scaling up production. In this study, we evaluated vanadium oxide cathode materials using a proposed scoring system and considering three key criteria: i) manufacturing costs (including capital: equipment, and operational: material cost, energy consumption, synthesis time, and area requirement), ii) electrochemical performance (cycling stability, charge/discharge rate, and specific capacity), and iii) environmental impact (CO₂ emissions). Among the options considered, the best results were shown by V₂O₅·1.6H₂O nanosheets obtained by the hydrothermal method, scoring 87.8 points out of a possible 100. The techno-economic analysis of the highest-scoring samples showed that their production cost ranges from $17 to $26 per kilogram, which is equivalent to an energy cost in the range of $55 to $87 per kWh. When integrated into full-fledged battery systems, the energy cost is approximately $145–$177 per kWh, making them potential competitors to lithium-ion and redox flow batteries. The sensitivity analysis showed that synthesis conditions and raw material costs optimization can reduce the V₂O₅·1.6H₂O battery energy cost up to $135 per kWh breaking the $150 per kWh barrier and increasing the attractiveness of AZIB systems for use in large-scale energy storage systems.