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C
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Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies
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Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies

A special issue of C (ISSN 2311-5629).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 August 2019) | Viewed by 22190

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Navneet Soin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Engineering, Ulster University, Belfast BT37 0QB, Northern Ireland, UK
Interests: energy harvesting; energy storage sensors; plasma processing; bio-sensors; energy systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Surbhi Sharma

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Fuel Cells and their Fuels, Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
Interests: graphene oxide; graphene and other carbon nanostructured materials; low temperature fuel cells and other electrochemical energy systems; proton conduction membranes; multilayer membranes; conductive and corrosion resistant hybrid polymer coatings; synthetic biology for novel materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Deepak Pratap Singh

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Twente, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands
Interests: electrochemistry; Li/Na-ion batteries; Li-Sulfur batteries; metal air batteries; thin film oxides and composite electrodes; 2D materials; in situ characterization

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the inescapable reality of global warming, the need for environmentally clean energy conversion and storage technologies has never been greater. Carbon (in its various allotropes) has been a cornerstone for these technologies, wherein, its intrinsic chemical and electronic properties have been long exploited. From acting as a benign high-surface area, electronically conductive support for electrochemical energy generation in early polymer and alcohol fuel cells, to the current developments of nanostructured carbon-supports with tailored surface chemistry; carbon continues to facilitate the next generation of fuel cell, supercapacitor and battery technologies.

Surface modified and doped nanostructured carbons are being extensively developed for enhanced CO tolerance in anodic methanol and hydrogen oxidation reactions and precious metal-free cathodic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) electrodes. Similar design principles are being applied for carbon electrodes to facilitate and enhance the ionic and electronic transport in Li ion, Na ion, Li-S and metal (Li/Na) air batteries. The need for clean energy storage is further necessitating the exploration of tailored porosity and hierarchical design of carbon nanomaterials for enabling high energy and power density electrochemical supercapacitors.

Another latest application of carbon for energy application has been proposed in triboelectric energy harvesting technologies. Although not as widely explored, nanostructured carbon electrodes as charge collection electrodes with high optical transparency, electrical conductivity and flexibility make them highly attractive for use in triboelectric energy harvesting technologies. This makes it an attractive option for the subsequent development of flexible and wearable electronics.
 
In this Special Issue of C—Journal of Carbon Research, we invite authors to submit original communications, articles, and reviews on the application of carbon-based nanomaterials for enabling energy harvesting, generation and storage technologies.

Dr. Navneet Soin
Dr. Surbhi Sharma
Dr. Deepak Pratap Singh
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. C is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs)
  • Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells (DAFCs)
  • Fuel Cell membranes
  • Metal-free oxygen reduction (ORR) electrodes
  • Carbon electrochemistry
  • Supercapacitors
  • High Performance Batteries (Li-Ion, Na-Ion, Li-Sulfur, Li/Na-air etc.)
  • Piezoelectric, Triboelectric Energy Harvesting

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 3591 KiB  
Article
Waste Coffee Management: Deriving High-Performance Supercapacitors Using Nitrogen-Doped Coffee-Derived Carbon
by Jonghyun Choi, Camila Zequine, Sanket Bhoyate, Wang Lin, Xianglin Li, Pawan Kahol and Ram Gupta
C 2019, 5(3), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/c5030044 - 1 Aug 2019
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 5782
Abstract
In this work, nitrogen-doped activated carbon was produced from waste coffee powder using a two-step chemical activation process. Nitrogen doping was achieved by treating the coffee powder with melamine, prior to chemical activation. The produced nitrogen-doped carbon resulted in a very high surface [...] Read more.
In this work, nitrogen-doped activated carbon was produced from waste coffee powder using a two-step chemical activation process. Nitrogen doping was achieved by treating the coffee powder with melamine, prior to chemical activation. The produced nitrogen-doped carbon resulted in a very high surface area of 1824 m2/g and maintained a high graphitic phase as confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. The elemental composition of the obtained coffee-derived carbon was analyzed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The supercapacitor electrodes were fabricated using coffee-waste-derived carbon and analyzed using a three-electrode cell testing system. It was observed that nitrogen-doping improved the electrochemical performance of the carbon and therefore the charge storage capacity. The nitrogen-doped coffee carbon showed a high specific capacitance of 148 F/g at a current density of 0.5 A/g. The symmetrical coin cell device was fabricated using coffee-derived carbon electrodes to analyze its real-time performance. The device showed the highest specific capacitance of 74 F/g at a current density of 1 A/g. The highest energy and power density for the device was calculated to be 12.8 and 6.64 kW/kg, respectively. The stability test of the device resulted in capacitance retention of 97% after 10,000 cycles while maintaining its coulombic efficiency of 100%. These results indicate that the synthesized nitrogen-doped coffee carbon electrode could be used as a high-performance supercapacitor electrode for energy storage applications, and at the same time manage the waste generated by using coffee. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies)
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9 pages, 2191 KiB  
Article
Vertically Aligned Few-Layered Graphene-Based Non-Cryogenic Bolometer
by Anil K. Yadav, Saba Mehsar Khan, Anirban Kundu, Renu Rani, Navneet Soin, James McLaughlin, Devi Shanker Misra and Kiran Shankar Hazra
C 2019, 5(2), 23; https://doi.org/10.3390/c5020023 - 2 May 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3632
Abstract
In this study, we report the photoresponse of vertically aligned few-layered graphene (VAG) upon infra-red (IR) irradiation at room temperature. Four probe measurements showed the current–voltage (I–V) characteristic of electrical switching during pulsed IR irradiation. The photoresponse reported here for VAG was significantly [...] Read more.
In this study, we report the photoresponse of vertically aligned few-layered graphene (VAG) upon infra-red (IR) irradiation at room temperature. Four probe measurements showed the current–voltage (I–V) characteristic of electrical switching during pulsed IR irradiation. The photoresponse reported here for VAG was significantly higher than that reported for carbon nanotube (CNT) samples. Our investigation shows that such a photoresponse arose solely from the bolometric effect, where the conductivity changed with temperature. The resistance magnitude of the VAGs increased ~two fold for each 6 °C increase in temperature. Also, the Thermal Coefficient of Resistance (TCR) in this region was ~11%/K, which is the highest TCR value reported for any carbon nanomaterial. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies)
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10 pages, 7243 KiB  
Article
Electrochemical Properties of Graphene Oxide Nanoribbons/Polypyrrole Nanocomposites
by Johara Al Dream, Camila Zequine, K. Siam, Pawan K. Kahol, S. R. Mishra and Ram K. Gupta
C 2019, 5(2), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/c5020018 - 12 Apr 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4073
Abstract
Graphene is a highly studied material due to its unique electrical, optical, and mechanical properties. Graphene is widely applied in the field of energy such as in batteries, supercapacitors, and solar cells. The properties of graphene can be further improved by making nanocomposites [...] Read more.
Graphene is a highly studied material due to its unique electrical, optical, and mechanical properties. Graphene is widely applied in the field of energy such as in batteries, supercapacitors, and solar cells. The properties of graphene can be further improved by making nanocomposites with conducting polymers. In this work, graphene oxide nanoribbons (GONRs) were synthesized by unzipping multiwall carbon nanotubes. Graphene nanoribbons were used to make nanocomposites with polypyrrole for energy storage applications. The synthesized nanocomposites were structurally and electrochemically characterized to understand their structure and electrochemical properties. The electrochemical characterizations of these nanocomposites were carried out using cyclic voltammetry. The specific capacitance of the nanocomposites was observed to decrease with increasing scan rates. The highest specific capacitance of 2066 F/g was observed using cyclic voltammetry for the optimized nanocomposite of GONR and polypyrrole. Our study suggests that the electrochemical properties of graphene or polypyrrole can be improved by making their composites and that they could be successfully used as electrode materials for energy storage applications. This study can also be extended to the self-assembly of other conducting polymers and graphene nanoribbons through a simple route for various other applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies)
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Review

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27 pages, 8474 KiB  
Review
Challenges and Opportunities of Carbon Nanomaterials for Biofuel Cells and Supercapacitors: Personalized Energy for Futuristic Self-Sustainable Devices
by Itthipon Jeerapan and Nicolás Ma
C 2019, 5(4), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/c5040062 - 9 Oct 2019
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 7520
Abstract
Various carbon allotropes are fundamental components in electrochemical energy-conversion and energy-storage devices, e.g., biofuel cells (BFCs) and supercapacitors. Recently, biodevices, particularly wearable and implantable devices, are of distinct interest in biomedical, fitness, academic, and industrial fields due to their new fascinating capabilities for [...] Read more.
Various carbon allotropes are fundamental components in electrochemical energy-conversion and energy-storage devices, e.g., biofuel cells (BFCs) and supercapacitors. Recently, biodevices, particularly wearable and implantable devices, are of distinct interest in biomedical, fitness, academic, and industrial fields due to their new fascinating capabilities for personalized applications. However, all biodevices require a sustainable source of energy, bringing widespread attention to energy research. In this review, we detail the progress in BFCs and supercapacitors attributed to carbon materials. Self-powered biosensors for futuristic biomedical applications are also featured. To develop these energy devices, many challenges needed to be addressed. For this reason, there is a need to: optimize the electron transfer between the enzymatic site and electrode; enhance the power efficiency of the device in fluctuating oxygen conditions; strengthen the efficacy of enzymatic reactions at the carbon-based electrodes; increase the electrochemically accessible surface area of the porous electrode materials; and refine the flexibility of traditional devices by introducing a mechanical resiliency of electrochemical devices to withstand daily multiplexed movements. This article will also feature carbon nanomaterial research alongside opportunities to enhance energy technology and address the challenges facing the field of personalized applications. Carbon-based energy devices have proved to be sustainable and compatible energy alternatives for biodevices within the human body, serving as attractive options for further developing diverse domains, including individual biomedical applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Carbon Nanomaterials for Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies)
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