Hybrid Electrode Materials for High Energy Supercapacitors
EMSL Project ID
46006
Abstract
Nanostructured carbon materials have gained significant attention in recent years due to their potential applications including energy storage. Although various types of carbon based materials have been used in capacitors, however, the energy density of existing state-of-the-art carbon based capacitors is an order of magnitude lower (2-20 Wh/kg) than metal hydride (40-100 Wh/kg) and Li-ion batteries (120-170 Wh/kg). The key scientific barrier for low capacitances is the presence of micropores on the active surface of electrodes that are not accessible to electrolytes due to the small size. Significant improvement in the performance has been achieved in recent years by using novel materials and through recent advances in understanding the charge storage mechanisms. Experiments will be carried out in our laboratories and at EMSL to understand the underling fundamental mechanisms and properties required to improve performance utilizing micro/mesoporous electrodes with controlled pore size (~double the size of solvated ions of electrolyte used), increased electrochemically active surface area and high voltage electrolytes.
Project Details
Project type
Exploratory Research
Start Date
2012-01-11
End Date
2013-02-12
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members