Nick Szamreta Summer of Learning Symposium October 4th, 2013 Measuring the Intrinsic Capacitance of Graphene/Ionic Liquid Interfaces for High Energy Density Supercapacitors Nick Szamreta Summer of Learning Symposium October 4th, 2013
Logistical Overview 8 week internship funded by PEI Facilities at Ceramic Materials Lab (Prof. Ilhan A. Aksay) in Princeton Collect data on intrinsic capacitance useful for the design of supercapacitors
E ~ CV2 Supercapacitors High Power Density Low Energy Density Can charge and discharge quickly Low Energy Density Depends on electrode material (Functionalized Graphene Sheets) Depends on operating voltage (Ionic Liquids) E ~ CV2
Ionic Liquids Cation (Abbrev.) Anion (Abbrev.) Bmim+ Tf2n- Cation (Abbrev.) Anion (Abbrev.) 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium (emim) bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (tf2n) 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium (emim) Tetrafluoroborate (bf4) 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium (bmim) 1-butyl-4-methylpiperidinium (pip14) Emim+ Bf4- Pipip14+
Reasons for Studying Ionic Liquids Large electrochemical windows Thermal stability Low vapor pressure How do these different properties affect capacitance? Electrolyte Electrochemical Window (V) Emimtf2n 4.3 Bmimtf2n 4.8 Emimbf4 4.2 Pip14tf2n 5.0 Aqueous Electrolytes 1-2 Organic Electrolytes 3-5 Barrosse-Antle et al. (2010), Voltammetry in RTIL. Chem. Asian Journal. E ~ CV2
Intrinsic Capacitance Measurements Three electrode system Impedance Spectroscopy Measures the response to an AC signal Allows us to probe the interface and its electrochemical properties Intrinsic data for specific combinations of materials is valuable for supercapacitor design Measurements are much more controlled than a device
Sample data Allows us to compare different materials and electrolytes
Conclusions and Continued Work Ionic Liquids are promising electrolytes for supercapacitors in conjunction with FGS Testing other ionic liquids Diluting ionic liquids to increase power density Building and testing devices
Ackknowledgements Dr. Ilhan A. Aksay DJ Bozym Dr. Michael Pope PEI