Over the past decades, there has been a notable surge in the adoption of renewable energy sources and techniques for storage. Despite this growth, advancements in energy storage devices have been somewhat limited. Among the various renewable energy options like solar, hydrogen, hydropower, and thermal energy, lithium-ion batteries stand out as a promising solution due to their rapid discharge, stability, capacity, and durability. However, as demands increase for applications such as electric vehicles and smaller electronic devices, which necessitate higher specific capacity, faster charging/discharging rates, and enhanced stability, considerable efforts and resources are being dedicated to developing new and efficient battery materials.Nanocarbon materials, renowned for their chemical stability and conductivity, have been extensively studied for decades as both cathode and anode components. Their ability to form a conjugated 3D porous network holds great promise for enhancing the kinetic and chemical properties of lithium-ion batteries. In this project, a novel approach is proposed to create a free-standing conjugated 3D porous carbon system utilizing modified graphene and its analogous materials. A new fabrication technique based on microfluidic methods has been developed to reliably produce the 3D aligned porous structure of nanocarbon anodes for lithium-ion batteries. Various 3D free-standing films were produced by optimizing conditions such as precursor suspension concentration, flow rate, and microfluidic channel dimensions. Through comprehensive characterization employing techniques it was confirmed that the 3D porous films possessed anisotropic vertical alignment and macro-porosity, significantly enhancing battery performance.Notably, the fabricated batteries exhibited substantially increased specific capacity and cyclability compared to those utilizing commercial or unmodified anodes. For instance, by using our 3D free-standing anodic film of MXene/reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite, the resulting battery achieved a specific capacity over 400% higher than its counterparts. This achievement represents a novel advancement, as the preparation of vertically aligned anisotropic 3D free-standing films with suitable dimensions for battery applications, coupled with their superior performance as battery anodes, has not been previously reported.Thus, the development of the modified microfluidic method, along with the structural and compositional innovations outlined in this project, holds significant potential for revolutionizing the fabrication of high-performance and durable anodes for the lithium-ion battery industry.
Read full abstract