The role of nanomaterials in redox-based supercapacitors for next generation energy storage devices

Abstract

The development of more efficient electrical storage is a pressing requirement to meet future societal and environmental needs. This demand for more sustainable, efficient energy storage has provoked a renewed scientific and commercial interest in advanced capacitor designs in which the suite of experimental techniques and ideas that comprise nanotechnology are playing a critical role. Capacitors can be charged and discharged quickly and are one of the primary building blocks of many types of electrical circuit, from microprocessors to large-sale power supplies, but usually have relatively low energy storage capability when compared with batteries. The application of nanostructured materials with bespoke morphologies and properties to electrochemical supercapacitors is being intensively studied in order to provide enhanced energy density without comprising their inherent high power density and excellent cyclability. In particular, electrode materials that exploit physical adsorption or redox reactions of electrolyte ions are foreseen to bridge the performance disparity between batteries with high energy density and capacitors with high power density. In this review, we present some of the novel nanomaterial systems applied for electrochemical supercapacitors and show how material morphology, chemistry and physical properties are being tailored to provide enhanced electrochemical supercapacitor performance.

Microwave-Assisted Oxidation of Electrospun Turbostratic Carbon Nanofibers for Tailoring Energy Storage Capabilities

“…Thus we next attempt to examine if such differences could have affected the redox reactions of the surface oxide, which govern the redox-based pseudocapacitance. [35,108] A question of particular interest is whether a much lower pseudocapacitance for ECNF-M5 than for ECNF-M3 could be explained by the difference in electronic structure between them. Several previous studies, [109,110] essentially based on the work of Marcus [111] and Hush, [112] suggest that the electron transfer rate (k ET ) of a redox species depends strongly on the D(E F ) of the electrode material.…”

Microwave assisted synthesis of MnO2 on nickel foam-graphene for electrochemical capacitor

“…Supercapacitors are electrochemical double layer capacitors that have attracted much attention due to their high power density, long cycle life, low temperature sensitivity, low maintenance cost and environmentally friendly nature [1][2][3]. They fill the gap between batteries (high energy density) and electrolytic capacitors (high power density) [4].…”

Chemical adsorption of NiO nanostructures on nickel foam-graphene for supercapacitor applications

“…Supercapacitors are electrochemical capacitors (ECs) that have received considerable attention because of their excellent properties which include high power density, long cycle life, low temperature sensitivity, low maintenance cost and their environmentally friendly nature [1][2][3]. Depending on the charge storage mechanism of the material, supercapacitors are classified as either electrochemical double layer capacitors (EDLCs) using ion adsorption, or pseudocapacitors using a fast and reversible Faradic reaction.…”