Clay Key to High-Temperature Supercapacitors

Mining & Minerals - Evaluations / Off-World Exploration, Mining, & Technology

Date posted: 09/05/13

Rice University lab creates energy storage that may find use in oil discovery, space, military applications. Clay, an abundant and cheap natural material, is a key ingredient in a supercapacitor that can operate at very high temperatures, according to Rice University researchers who have developed such a device. The Rice group of materials led by geoscientist Pulickel Ajayan reported in Nature online journal, Scientific Reports, that the supercapacitor is reliable at temperatures of up to 200 degrees Celsius (392 degrees Fahrenheit) and possibly beyond. It could be useful for powering devices for use in extreme environments, such as oil drilling, the military and space. A composite of clay and an electrolyte allowed Rice University researchers to make sheets of material that can serve as both electrolyte and a separator in a new kind of high-temperature supercapacitor. They found that a clay-based membrane electrolyte is a game-changing breakthrough that overcomes one of the key limitations of high-temperature operation of electrochemical energy devices. By allowing safe operation over a wide range of temperatures without compromising on high energy, power and cycle life, they believe that we can dramatically enhance or even eliminate the need for expensive thermal management systems.