Carbon–cement supercapacitors as a scalable bulk energy storage solution
Name
chanut-et-al-2023-carbon-cement-supercapacitors-as-a-scalable-bulk-energy-storage-solution.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
10.49 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
7ab12fd9ea2fb1d071abe69e535fd3e4
Author(s)
Chanut, Nicolas
Stefaniuk, Damian
Weaver, James C.
Zhu, Yunguang
Shao-Horn, Yang
Masic, Admir
Ulm, Franz-Josef
Date Issued
July 31, 2023
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Publisher
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Citation
Chanut, Nicolas, Stefaniuk, Damian, Weaver, James C., Zhu, Yunguang, Shao-Horn, Yang et al. 2023. "Carbon–cement supercapacitors as a scalable bulk energy storage solution." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120 (32).
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The large-scale implementation of renewable energy systems necessitates the development of energy storage solutions to effectively manage imbalances between energy supply and demand. Herein, we investigate such a scalable material solution for energy storage in supercapacitors constructed from readily available material precursors that can be locally sourced from virtually anywhere on the planet, namely cement, water, and carbon black. We characterize our carbon-cement electrodes by combining correlative EDS–Raman spectroscopy with capacitance measurements derived from cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge experiments using integer and fractional derivatives to correct for rate and current intensity effects. Texture analysis reveals that the hydration reactions of cement in the presence of carbon generate a fractal-like electron-conducting carbon network that permeates the load-bearing cement-based matrix. The energy storage capacity of this space-filling carbon black network of the high specific surface area accessible to charge storage is shown to be an intensive quantity, whereas the high-rate capability of the carbon-cement electrodes exhibits self-similarity due to the hydration porosity available for charge transport. This intensive and self-similar nature of energy storage and rate capability represents an opportunity for mass scaling from electrode to structural scales. The availability, versatility, and scalability of these carbon-cement supercapacitors opens a horizon for the design of multifunctional structures that leverage high energy storage capacity, high-rate charge/discharge capabilities, and structural strength for sustainable residential and industrial applications ranging from energy autarkic shelters and self-charging roads for electric vehicles, to intermittent energy storage for wind turbines and tidal power stations.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2304318120
