Investigation of ion desolvation in aqueous electrolyte with carbon electrode via electrochemical in-situ Raman

Abstract

Energy storage is an essential means to stabilize the fluctuation of renewable energy generation. Based on desolvation of electrolyte ions, high density charge storage in nanoporous electrodes has attracted widespread attention. The mechanism of ion transport within nanopores is currently under exploration. In this work, electric double layer capacitor was established using porous carbon electrode. Electrolytes with different hydrated/desolvatd ion radii were selected. The ion desolvation process was observed indirectly and concisely by using electrochemical in situ Raman technique on the carbon electrode. It was found that for ion with bigger solvation shells, its Raman intensity fluctuated with the cell charging voltage, which was caused by the desolvation of electrolyte ions. The desolvated ion has a strong polarization effect on the electron cloud of carbon. The influence of electrolyte concentrations on desolvation was also explored. High concentration electrolyte exhibits greater increase in Raman peak intensity. Our approach provides a way to study the physical mechanism and interface behavior of ion desolvation in electrochemical devices.