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Insights into Bulk Electrolyte Effects on the Operative Voltage of Electrochemical Double-Layer Capacitors

Publication Type

Journal Article

Date Published

05/2016

Authors

Ray, Promit, Sebastian Dohm, Tamara Husch, Christoph Shutter, Kristin A. Persson, Andrea Balducci, Barbara Kirchner, Martin Korth

DOI

10.1021/acs.jpcc.6b00891

Abstract

Electrochemical double-layer capacitors (EDLCs) are robust, high-power, and fast-charging energy storage devices. Rational design of novel electrolyte materials could further improve the performance of EDLCs. Computational methods offer immense scope in aiding the development of such materials. Trends in experimentally observed operative voltages nevertheless remain difficult to predict and understand. We discuss here the intriguing case of adiponitrile (ADN) versus 2-methyl-glutaronitrile (2MGN) based electrolytes, which result in very different operative voltages in EDLCs despite structural similarity. As a preliminary step, bulk electrolyte effects on electrochemical stability are investigated by ab initiomolecular dynamics (AIMD) and static, cluster-based quantum chemistry calculations.

Journal

The Journal of Physical Chemistry C

Volume

120

Year of Publication

2016

Issue

ISSN

1932-7447

Organization

Applied Energy Materials Group, Energy Storage and Distributed Resources Division