Researchers at Monash University have developed a new carbon-based material that enables supercapacitors to store energy like lead-acid batteries while delivering far more power than conventional batteries.
By rapidly thermally annealing a graphite oxide precursor, researchers at Monash University in Australia have successfully fabricated a supercapacitor with a volumetric power density of up to 69.2 kilowatts per liter, demonstrating excellent fast charging and cycling stability.
Supercapacitors are an emerging class of energy storage devices that store charge electrostatically, rather than through the chemical reactions of traditional batteries. However, a major obstacle has long been the limited surface area of carbon materials available for energy storage.
Professor Mainak Majumder of Monash University's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Director of the Advanced Manufacturing of 2D Materials (AM2D) Research Center, said the researchers unlocked more surface area in the carbon material by modifying the heat treatment method.
Majumder explained that the key lies in a new material structure—multiscale reduced graphene oxide (M-rGO)—derived from natural graphite. The research team used a rapid thermal annealing process to create highly curved graphene structures, creating precise channels for the fast and efficient movement of ions, thereby achieving both high energy density and high power density.
Study co-author Petar Jovanović, a researcher at AM2D, stated that when assembled into pouch cells, the new supercapacitor achieved a volumetric energy density of up to 99.5 watt-hours per liter and a power density of up to 69.2 kilowatts per liter, while maintaining long-term stability.
The researchers noted that this achievement marks a major breakthrough in the global development of a new generation of energy storage devices that combine high energy and power, paving the way for applications in electric transportation, grid regulation, and consumer electronics.
The related research results have been published in Nature Communications, titled "In-situ interlayer expansion of multi-scale curved graphene enables efficient volumetric supercapacitors."
Researchers at Monash University have developed a new carbon-based material that enables supercapacitors to store energy like lead-acid batteries while delivering far more power than conventional batteries.
By rapidly thermally annealing a graphite oxide precursor, researchers at Monash University in Australia have successfully fabricated a supercapacitor with a volumetric power density of up to 69.2 kilowatts per liter, demonstrating excellent fast charging and cycling stability.
Supercapacitors are an emerging class of energy storage devices that store charge electrostatically, rather than through the chemical reactions of traditional batteries. However, a major obstacle has long been the limited surface area of carbon materials available for energy storage.
Professor Mainak Majumder of Monash University's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Director of the Advanced Manufacturing of 2D Materials (AM2D) Research Center, said the researchers unlocked more surface area in the carbon material by modifying the heat treatment method.
Majumder explained that the key lies in a new material structure—multiscale reduced graphene oxide (M-rGO)—derived from natural graphite. The research team used a rapid thermal annealing process to create highly curved graphene structures, creating precise channels for the fast and efficient movement of ions, thereby achieving both high energy density and high power density.
Study co-author Petar Jovanović, a researcher at AM2D, stated that when assembled into pouch cells, the new supercapacitor achieved a volumetric energy density of up to 99.5 watt-hours per liter and a power density of up to 69.2 kilowatts per liter, while maintaining long-term stability.
The researchers noted that this achievement marks a major breakthrough in the global development of a new generation of energy storage devices that combine high energy and power, paving the way for applications in electric transportation, grid regulation, and consumer electronics.
The related research results have been published in Nature Communications, titled "In-situ interlayer expansion of multi-scale curved graphene enables efficient volumetric supercapacitors."
