Status of Biomass Derived Carbon Materials for Supercapacitor Application

Abstract

Environmental concerns and energy security uncertainties associated with fossil fuels have driven the world to shift to renewable energy sources. However, most renewable energy sources with exception of hydropower are intermittent in nature and thus need storage systems. Amongst various storage systems, supercapacitors are the promising candidates for energy storage not only in renewable energies but also in hybrid vehicles and portable devices due to their high power density. Supercapacitor electrodes are almost invariably made of carbon derived from biomass. Several reviews had been focused on general carbon materials for supercapacitor electrode. This review is focused on understanding the extent to which different types of biomasses have been used as porous carbon materials for supercapacitor electrodes. It also details hydrothermal microwave assisted, ionothermal, and molten salts carbonization as techniques of synthesizing activated carbon from biomasses as well as their characteristics and their impacts on electrochemical performance.

Sustainable Utilization of Biomass Refinery Wastes for Accessing Activated Carbons and Supercapacitor Electrode Materials

“…CV curves for Chem-900-2 at different scan rates from 5t o1 00 mV s À1 show no noticeable peaks andi ndicate ar apid and efficient charge transfer and ac harge/dischargep rocess typical for an electrical double layer capacitor ( Figure 1b). All in all, the Chem-900-2 sample demonstrates an electrochemical performance close to (or higher than) the performances of typical bio-waste derived ACs studied in aqueous KOH electrolyte, [46][47][48] although the SSA of Chem-900-2i su pt oa pproximately four times lower than the SSAs of other carbon materials described in the literature. SEM and TEM studies of the electrode active mass before and after GCD cycling revealed no significant changes of the porouss tructure of the carbon material (Figures S10 and S11).…”

Supercapacitor Electrodes from Viscose-Based Activated Carbon Fibers: Significant Yield and Performance Improvement Using Diammonium Hydrogen Phosphate as Impregnating Agent

“…Global energy consumption has been accelerating at an alarming rate due to the rapid development of the global economy and the growing human population worldwide [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. To meet the growing energy demands required to sustain current living standards while avoiding depletion and environmental pollution, there is a need for the development of high-performance, low-cost and environment-friendly energy resources.…”

“…In order to be able to use these environmentally friendly and renewable sources of energy in the long term, new and effective energy storage systems must be developed [10]. Supercapacitors (also known as electrochemical capacitors or ultracapacitors) are a type of energy storage device that is attracting more and more attention because they can be charged and discharged C 2020, 6, 17; doi:10.3390/c6020017 www.mdpi.com/journal/carbon C 2020, 6, 17 2 of 12 very fast, have a very high power density (<10,000 W•kg −1 ), require little maintenance and have a long life of over 1 million charge and discharge cycles [1,2,11]. For the production of such supercapacitors, carbon materials are used as electrodes, since they are chemically and thermally stable and easy to process.…”

“…In addition, their structural properties can be modified and optimized relatively easily. Activated carbons are very popular in this research area since they are characterized by a high specific surface area (1000-3000 m 2 •g −1 ) and a high pore volume (0.5-2 cm 3 •g −1 ) at a comparatively low cost (4.15 US$•kg −1 ) [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]12]. ACFs are an exciting alternative to classic granular and powdered activated carbons.…”

Preparation of Activated Carbon from Banana Peel Waste as Adsorbent for Motor Vehicle Exhaust Emissions

“…Various chemical activating agent can be used in chemical activation process, such as ZnCl 2 , KOH, H 2 SO 4 , H 3 PO 4 , HNO 3 , etc. [10]. Recently, various types of raw material, chemical activating agent, and physical activation method in the making process of activated carbon are studied [11][12][13].…”