Energy Materials

Aluminum coatings were deposited on glass substrates by chemical vapor deposition using N-methylpiperidine (nmp) stabilized dichloroalane [Cl2AlH•2nmp] as aluminum precursor. With regard to temperature, the experimental conditions were varied between 75 °C and 125 °C for the precursor and between 250 °C and 450 °C for the substrate. Depending on these parameters, highly textured layers could be deposited. The substrates have been consistently covered by a layer of idiomorphic, mostly distorted octahedra of aluminum single crystals. The morphologies of the structures and the degree of orientation of the crystals were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements. The high order of [111] orientation was found to decrease with increasing precursor and substrate temperature. We propose a mechanism for the generation of the octahedral structures based on the formation of mesocrystals. On heating, the dichloroalane (stabilized with nmp) loses the nmp ligands together with hydrogen and chlorine. The amine (nmp) seems to trigger the formation of aluminum crystals depending on the temperature and thus influences the texture of the Al-layer and the formation of well-formed octahedron-like structures.

Thermal signature of supercapacitors are investigated in-situ and ex-situ using commercial supercapacitors. Regarding the in-situ method, four supercapacitors were connected in series, with thermocouples embedded between the supercapacitors. As the applied current was increased, the temperature measured at the intrinsic positions also increased. When cycling at a current density of 0.11 A cm−2 the centre temperature increased by 14 K compared to the stack surface temperature. This is an important figure as literature states that an increase of 10 K leads to a corresponding decrease in the lifetime by a factor of 2. Using the obtained temperature profiles, the effective thermal conductivity of the stack was found to vary between 0.5 W K−1 m−1 and 1.0 W K−1 m−1, depending on the compaction of the stack. For the ex-situ measurements, the thermal conductivity and the thicknesses of the supercapacitor material layers were measured individually in order to determine the corresponding thermal conductivity of the stack. When using this method an effective thermal conductivity of the stack of 0.53 ± 0.06 W K−1 m−1 was obtained. The analysis also demonstrated that the main contributor to the thermal resistivity and conductivity of the supercapacitor construction is the electrodes. This demonstrates that when managing heat from supercapacitors it is important to focus on the thermal conductivity of the components materials.

Onion-like carbon, also known as carbon onions, is a highly conductive material enabling supercapacitor electrodes with a very high power density. However, the moderate specific capacitance (circa 30 F/g) is insufficient for many energy storage applications. In our study, we show how decoration of carbon onions with quinones provides a facile method to increase the energy density up to one order of magnitude, namely, from 0.5 Wh/kg to 4.5 Wh/kg, while retaining a high power density and long lifetime. We present data for carbon onions modified with three different kinds of quinones: 1,4-naphthoquinone, 9,10-phenanthrenequinone, and 4,5-pyrenedione. Quinone-decorated carbon onion electrodes are investigated considering the actual quinone loading and the resulting electrochemical performance is probed in 1 M H2SO4 as the electrolyte using cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge. The maximum capacitance, 264 F/g, is found for carbon onions modified with 4,5-pyrenedione, which also shows the smallest fade in specific capacitance, namely 3%, over 10,000 charge and discharge cycles at a high current density of 1.3 A/g.

Electrochemical double layer capacitors (EDLC) are rapidly emerging as a promising energy storage technology offering extremely large power densities. Despite significant experimental progress, nanoscale operation mechanisms of the EDLCs remain poorly understood and it is difficult to separate processes at multiple time and length scales involved in operation including that of double layer charging and ionic mass transport. Here we explore the functionality of EDLC microporous carbon electrodes using a combination of classical electrochemical measurements and scanning probe microscopy based dilatometry, thus separating individual stages in charge/discharge processes based on strain generation. These methods allowed us to observe two distinct modes of EDLC charging, one fast charging of the double layer unassociated with strain, and another much slower mass transport related charging exhibiting significant sample volume changes. These studies open the pathway for the exploration of electrochemical systems with multiple processes involved in the charge and discharge, and investigation of the kinetics of those processes.

A recently introduced, novel electrical energy storage concept, the electrochemical flow capacitor (EFC), holds much promise for grid-scale energy storage applications. The EFC combines the principles behind the operation of flow batteries and supercapacitors, and enables rapid charging/discharging and decoupled energy/power ratings. Electrical charge is stored in a flowable carbon slurry composed of low-cost and abundantly available carbon particles in pH-neutral, aqueous electrolyte. Charge storage and transfer is analogous to solid carbon electrodes in conventional supercapacitors. Here, the effects of carbon particle solid fraction, shape, and size on the electrochemical and rheological properties of slurry electrodes are investigated. A static cell configuration is utilized for studying the electrochemical properties of the flowable electrodes. The electrochemical properties of the slurry electrodes tested in a static cell are found to be similar to that of solid electrodes in conventional supercapacitors for both, large spherical and anisometric activated carbons. Flow properties of the slurry electrodes are obtained for shear rates corresponding to pumping shear rates by rheometry. Results indicate that electrochemical and rheological properties of slurries depend on their concentration, shape and size of the carbon particles used in the slurries. For a range of concentrations, slurries based on spherical carbon particles show lower viscosities compared to anisometric activated carbon based slurries while performing similar electrochemically.

Owing to recent power- and energy-density advances, higher efficiencies, and almost unlimited lifetimes, electrical double-layer capacitors (EDLCs, also known as supercapacitors) are now used in a wide range of energy harvesting and storage systems, which include portable power and grid applications. Despite offering key performance advantages, many device components pose significant environmental hazards once disposed. They often contain fluorine, sulfur, and cyanide groups, which are harmful if discarded by using conventional landfill or incineration methods, and they are constructed by using multiple metallic parts, which contribute to a high ash content. We explore designs for a fully operational supercapacitor that incorporates materials completely safe to dispose of and easy to incinerate. The components, which include material alternatives for the current collector, electrolyte, separator, particle binder, and packaging, are all mutually compatible, and most of them exhibit better performance than commonly used materials. We selected a graphite foil as current collector, sodium acetate as electrolyte, an ester as porous membrane based on acetate cellulose, and polymers based on polyvinyl alcohol as environmentally benign solutions for device components. The presented materials all originate from simple and inexpensive source compounds, which decreases the environmental impact of their manufacture and renders them more viable for integration into commercial devices for large-scale stationary and transportation energy storage applications.

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of supercapacitors with single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) electrodes in room-temperature ionic liquids were performed to investigate the influences of the applied electrical potential, the radius/curvature of SWCNTs, and temperature on their capacitive behavior. It is found that (1) SWCNTs-based supercapacitors exhibit a near-flat capacitance-potential curve, (2) the capacitance increases as the tube radius decreases, and (3) the capacitance depends little on the temperature. We report the first MD study showing the influence of the electrode curvature on the capacitance-potential curve and negligible dependence of temperature on capacitance of tubular electrode. The latter is in good agreement with recent experimental findings and is attributed to the similarity of the electrical double layer (EDL) microstructure with temperature varying from 260 to 400 K. The electrode curvature effect is explained by the dominance of charge overscreening and increased ion density per unit area of electrode surface.

The performance of supercapacitors is determined by the electrical double layers (EDLs) formed at electrolyte/electrode interfaces. To understand the energy storage mechanism underlying supercapacitors, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were used to study the capacitive behavior of carbon-based supercapacitors with room-temperature ionic liquid (RTIL) electrolytes. The performance of porous supercapacitors was found to be correlated with the ion/pore size and applied voltage. Supercapacitors composed of RTILs on the outer, positively curved surfaces of onion-like carbons (OLCs) or carbon nanotubes (CNTs) exhibited significant effects on capacitance and the distinctive feature that differential capacitance varies only weakly with voltage. Investigations of temperature influence revealed a positive temperature dependence of capacitance for OLC-based supercapacitors and a weak dependence of capacitance on temperature for CNT-based supercapacitors, in line with experimental observations. Molecular insights into RTIL-based supercapacitors, reviewed in this Perspective, could facilitate the design and development of a new generation of energy storage devices.

A detailed understanding of ion adsorption within porous carbon is key to the design and improvement of electric double-layer capacitors, more commonly known as supercapacitors. In this work nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is used to study ion adsorption in porous carbide-derived carbons. These predominantly microporous materials have a tuneable pore size which enables a systematic study of the effect of pore size on ion adsorption. Multinuclear NMR experiments performed on the electrolyte anions and cations reveal two main environments inside the carbon. In-pore ions (observed at low frequencies) are adsorbed inside the pores, whilst ex-pore ions (observed at higher frequencies) are not adsorbed and are in large reservoirs of electrolyte between carbon particles. All our experiments were carried out in the absence of an applied electrical potential in order to assess the mechanisms related to ion adsorption without the contribution of electrosorption. Our results indicate similar adsorption behaviour for anions and cations. Furthermore, we probe the effect of sample orientation, which is shown to have a marked effect on the NMR spectra. Finally, we show that a 13C -> 1H cross polarisation experiment enables magnetisation transfer from the carbon architecture to the adsorbed species, allowing selective observation of the adsorbed ions and confirming our spectral assignments.

In situ electrochemical dilatometry was used to study, for the first time, the expansion behavior of a porous carbon electrode in a pure ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium-tetrafluoroborate. For a single electrode, an applied potential of −2 V and +2 V against the potential of zero charge resulted in maximum strains of 1.8% and 0.5%, respectively. During cyclic voltammetry, the characteristic expansion behavior strongly depends on the scan rate, with increased scan rates leading to a decrease of the expansion. Chronoamperometry was used to determine the equilibrium specific capacitance and expansion. The obtained strain versus accumulated charge relationship can be fitted with a simple quadratic function. Cathodic and anodic expansion data collapse on one parabola when normalizing the surface charge by the ratio of ion volume and average pore size. There is also a transient spike in the height change when polarity is switched from positive to negative that is not observed when changing the potential from negative to positive indicating the size and the shape of the ion is influencing the expansion behavior.