Scientists develop high-performance hybrid supercapacitors with novel electrode material
New Delhi, December 17
Scientists have developed a low-cost supercapacitor device that can pave the way for the next generation ‘high power-high energy storage devices’, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) said on Thursday.
Supercapacitors have gained considerable attention due to their high power density, long cycle life and excellent capacity retention compared to their battery counterparts.
The scientists at the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), an institute under the DST, in collaboration with IIT-Hyderabad have developed a facile, scalable and cost-effective electrochemical route to synthesise electrodes made of nickel cobaltite (NiCo2O4).
It also contains nanosheet structures with incorporated oxygen vacancies as an active material, for hybrid supercapacitors.
These electrodes have been found to have excellent electrochemical performance.
“Such hybrid supercapacitors combine the features of both conventional double layer supercapacitors and batteries and act as high power-high energy storage devices,” the DST said in a statement.
However, it remains challenging to design pseudocapacitor devices with redox metal oxide (MO) materials with high porosity, which exhibit high capacitance and good cycle life, it said.
It is desirable to amend the intrinsic properties of the synthesised MO to enhance its conductivity, stability, and electrochemical activity, the statement added.
The scientists addressed these challenges and were successful in synthesising NiCo2O4 nanostructured electrodes by a novel electrodeposition route.
They also introduced an optimum number of oxygen vacancies by an environmentally benign chemical reduction process to make up for an active, positive electrode material for hybrid supercapacitors, as reported in their recent publication in the journal “Batteries & Supercaps”.
“This could be an effective alternative to the existing carbon-based electrodes for supercapacitors to achieve high energy density,” the statement said.
An asymmetric supercapacitor device further fabricated by the research team, using porous carbon and NiCo2O4 electrodes exhibited excellent capacity retention and stability. The device could power an LED lamp and a DC fan, it noted. — PTI
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