Synthesis of P-Doped and NiCo-Hybridized Graphene-Based Fibers for Flexible Asymmetrical Solid-State Micro-Energy Storage Device

Carbon Micro/Nano Machining toward Miniaturized Device: Structural Engineering, Large-Scale Fabrication, and Performance Optimization

With the rapid development of micro/nano machining, there is an elevated demand for high-performance microdevices with high reliability and low cost. Due to their outstanding electrochemical, optical, electrical, and mechanical performance, carbon materials are extensively utilized in constructing microdevices for energy storage, sensing, and optoelectronics. Carbon micro/nano machining is fundamental in carbon-based intelligent microelectronics, multifunctional integrated microsystems, high-reliability portable/wearable consumer electronics, and portable medical diagnostic systems. Despite numerous reviews on carbon materials, a comprehensive overview is lacking that systematically encapsulates the development of high-performance microdevices based on carbon micro/nano structures, from structural design to manufacturing strategies and specific applications. This review focuses on the latest progress in carbon micro/nano machining toward miniaturized device, including structural engineering, large-scale fabrication, and performance optimization. Especially, the review targets an in-depth evaluation of carbon-based micro energy storage devices, microsensors, microactuators, miniaturized photoresponsive and electromagnetic interference shielding devices. Moreover, it highlights the challenges and opportunities in the large-scale manufacturing of carbon-based microdevices, aiming to spark further exciting research directions and application prospectives.

Construction of Binder-Free, Self-Supported, Hetero-Core-Shell Honeycomb Structured CuCo2 O4 @Ni0.5 Co0.5 (OH)2 with Abundant Mesopores and High Conductivity for High-Performance Energy Storage

Clever and rational design of structural hierarchy, along with precise component adjustment, holds profound significance for the construction of high-performance supercapacitor electrode materials. In this study, a binder-free self-supported CCO@N0.5 C0.5 OH/NF cathode material is constructed with hierarchical hetero-core-shell honeycomb nanostructure by first growing CuCo2 O4 (CCO) nanopin arrays uniformly on highly conductive nickel foam (NF) substrate, and then anchoring Ni0.5 Co0.5 (OH)2 (N0.5 C0.5 OH) bimetallic hydroxide nanosheet arrays on the CCO nanopin arrays by adjusting the molar ratio of Ni(OH)2 and Co(OH)2 . The constructed CCO@N0.5 C0.5 OH/NF electrode material showcases a wealth of multivalent metal ions and mesopores, along with good electrical conductivity, excellent electrochemical reaction rates, and robust long-term performance (capacitance retention rate of 87.2%). The CCO@N0.5 C0.5 OH/NF electrode, benefiting from the hierarchical structure of the material and the exceptional synergy between multiple components, demonstrates an excellent specific capacitance (2553.6 F g-1 at 1 A g-1 ). Furthermore, the assembled asymmetric CCO@N0.5 C0.5 OH/NF//AC/NF supercapacitor demonstrates a high energy density (70.1 Wh kg-1 at 850 W kg-1 ), and maintains robust capacitance cycling stability performance (83.7%) after undergoing 10 000 successive charges and discharges. It is noteworthy that the assembled supercapacitor exhibits an operating voltage (1.7 V) that is well above the theoretical value (1.5 V).

Oxygen defect enriched hematite nanorods @ reduced graphene oxide core-sheath fiber for superior flexible asymmetric supercapacitor

The development of flexible asymmetric supercapacitors with high operating potential, superior energy density, and exceptional rate performance holds significant implications for the advancement of flexible electronics. Herein, oxygen-deficient hematite nanorods @ reduced graphene oxide (Fe2O3-x@RGO) core-sheath fiber was rationally designed and fabricated. The introduction of oxygen defects can simultaneously enhance the conductivity, create a mesoporous crystalline structure, increase active surface area and sites. This leads to a significantly improved electrochemical performance, exhibiting a high specific capacitance of 525.2F cm-3 at 5 mV s-1 and remarkable rate capability (53.7 % retention from 5 to 100 mV s-1). Additionally, a flexible asymmetric supercapacitor was assembled employing Fe2O3-x@RGO fibers as anode and MnO2/RGO fibers as cathode. This design achieved a maximum operating voltage of 2.35 V, high energy density of 71.4 mWh cm-3, and outstanding cycling stability with 97.1 % retention after 5000 cycles. This study proposes a straightforward and efficient strategy to substantially enhance the electrochemical performances of transition metal oxide anodes, thereby promoting their practical application in asymmetric supercapacitors.

Cationic and anionic defect decoration of CoO through Cu dopants and oxygen vacancy for a High‑Performance supercapacitor

CoO has attracted increasing attention as an electrochemical energy storage owing to its excellent redox activity and high theoretical specific capacitance. However, its low inherent electrical conductivity results in sluggish reaction kinetics, and the poor rate capability of CoO limits its widespread applications. Herein, a multiple-defect strategy of engineering oxygen vacancies and Cu-ion dopants into the low-crystalline CoO nanowires (Ov-Cu-CoO) is successfully applied. Because of the advantage of the dual defect synergetic effect, the electronic structure and charge distribution are effectively modulated, thus enhancing the electrical conductivity and enriched redox chemistry. The obtained Ov-Cu-CoO electrode exhibits a high specific capacity of 1388.6 F⋅g-1 at a current density of 1 A⋅g-1, an ultrahigh rate performance (81.2% of the capacitance retained at 20 A⋅g-1) and excellent cycling stability (101.1% after 10,000 cycles). Moreover, an asymmetric supercapacitor device with Ov-Cu-CoO as the positive electrode having a high energy density of 44.1 W⋅h⋅kg-1 at a power density of 800 W⋅kg-1, and can still remain 27.2 W⋅h⋅kg-1 at a power density of 16 kW⋅kg-1. This study demonstrates an effective strategy to enhance electrochemical performance of CoO that can be easy applied to other transition metal oxides.

Dandelion-Like CuCo2O4@ NiMn LDH Core/Shell Nanoflowers for Excellent Battery-Type Supercapacitor

Dandelion-like CuCo₂O₄ nanoflowers (CCO NFs) with ultrathin NiMn layered double hydroxide (LDH) shells were fabricated via a two-step hydrothermal method. The prepared CuCo₂O₄@NiMn LDH core/shell nanoflowers (CCO@NM LDH NFs) possessed a high specific surface area (~181 m²·g^-1) with an average pore size of ~256 nm. Herein, the CCO@NM LDH NFs exhibited the typical battery-type electrode material with a specific capacity of 2156.53 F·g^-1 at a current density of 1 A·g^-1. With the increase in current density, the rate capability retention was 68.3% at a current density of 10 A·g^-1. In particular, the 94.6% capacity of CCO@NM LDH NFs remains after 2500 cycles at 5 A·g^-1. An asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) with CCO@NM LDH NFs//activated carbon (AC) demonstrates a remarkable capacitance of 303.11 F·g^-1 at 1 A·g^-1 with excellent cycling stability. The coupling and synergistic effects of multi-valence transition metals provide a convenient channel for the electrochemical process, which is beneficial to spread widely within the realm of electrochemical energy storage.

A New Strategy for Fabricating Well-Distributed Polyaniline/Graphene Composite Fibers toward Flexible High-Performance Supercapacitors

Fiber-shaped supercapacitors are promising and attractive candidates as energy storage devices for flexible and wearable electric products. However, their low energy density (because their microstructure lacks homogeneity and they have few electroactive sites) restricts their development and application. In this study, well-distributed polyaniline/graphene composite fibers were successfully fabricated through a new strategy of self-assembly in solution combined with microfluidic techniques. The uniform assembly of polyaniline on graphene oxide sheets at the microscale in a water/N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone blended solvent was accompanied by the in situ reduction of graphene oxides to graphene nanosheets. The assembled fiber-shaped supercapacitors with gel-electrolyte exhibit excellent electrochemical performance, including a large specific areal capacitance of 541.2 mF cm^-2, along with a high energy density of 61.9 µW h cm^-2 at a power density of 294.1 µW cm^-2. Additionally, they can power an electronic device and blue LED lights for several minutes. The enhanced electrochemical performance obtained is mainly attributed to the homogeneous architecture designed, with an increased number of electroactive sites and a synergistic effect between polyaniline and graphene sheets. This research provides an avenue for the synthesis of fiber-shaped electrochemically active electrodes and may promote the development of future wearable electronics.

Sub-Second Joule-Heated RuO2-Decorated Nitrogen- and Sulfur-Doped Graphene Fibers for Flexible Fiber-type Supercapacitors

Graphene-based fiber-shaped supercapacitors (FSSCs) have received considerable attention as potential wearable energy storage devices owing to their simple operating mechanism, flexibility, and long-term stability. To date, energy storage capacities of supercapacitors have been significantly improved via strategies such as heteroatom doping and the incorporation of pseudocapacitive metal oxides. Herein, we develop a novel and scalable direct-hybridization method that combines heteroatom doping and metal oxide hybridization for the fabrication of high-performance FSSCs. Using porous and highly conductive nitrogen and sulfur co-doped graphene fibers (NS-GFs) as self-heating units, we successfully convert ruthenium hydroxide anchored to the surface into ruthenium oxide nanoparticles after programmed sub-second electrothermal annealing without structural damage of the fibers. The resulting fibers show an increased gravimetric capacitance of 68.88 F g^-1 compared to that of the pristine NS-GF (8.32 F g^-1), excellent cyclic stability maintaining 96.67% of the initial capacitance after 20 000 continuous charging/discharging cycles, and good mechanical flexibility. The findings of this work advocate a successful Joule heating strategy for preparing high-performance graphene-based metal oxide hybrid FSSCs for use in energy storage applications.

Nickel Cobaltite: A Positive Electrode Material for Hybrid Supercapacitors

The increased demand of energy due to the recent technological advances in diverse fields such as portable electronics and electric vehicles is often hindered by the poor capability of energy-storage systems. Although supercapacitors (SCs) exhibit higher power density than state-of-the art batteries, their insufficient energy density remains a major challenge. An emerging concept of hybrid supercapacitors (HSCs) with the combination of one capacitive and one battery electrode in a single cell holds a great promise to deliver high energy density without sacrificing power density and cycling stability. This Minireview elaborates the recent advances of use of nickel cobaltite (NiCo₂ O₄ ) as a potential positive electrode (battery-like) for HSCs. A brief introduction on the structural benefits and charge storage mechanisms of NiCo₂ O₄ was provided. It further shed a light on composites of NiCo₂ O₄ with different materials like carbon, polymers, metal oxides, and others, which altogether helps in increasing the electrochemical performance of HSCs. Finally, the key scientific challenges and perspectives on building high-performance HSCs for future-generation applications were reviewed.

Novel CoZnNi oxyphosphide-based electrode with high hydroxyl ion adsorption capacity for ultra-high volumetric energy density asymmetric supercapacitor

Achieving a high volumetric energy density supercapacitor is of great significance for portable energy storage devices while still a major challenge. Herein, we design and fabricate self-supporting electrodes using CoZnNi oxyphosphide nanoarrays sandwiched graphene/carbon nanotube (CZNP/GC) film with highly exposed active sites. Benefitting from the modified electronic structures, high accessible surface areas, and the integrated structure, the well-designed CZNP/GC electrode exhibits an ultra-high volumetric capacitance of 2096.4 F cm^-3 at a current density of 1 A g^-1. Moreover, a high-performance negative electrode of carbon/rGO/CNTs (C/GC) is also fabricated using the same CoZn-metal-organic frameworks precursor. The assembled asymmetric supercapacitor CZNP/GC//C/GC displays an ultra-high volumetric energy density of 71.8 W h L^-1 at 960 W L^-1. After 6000 charge-discharge cycles, the device still maintains 85.6% of the original capacitance. The density functional theory calculation is studied and the negative adsorption energy proves that the OH^- adsoption process onto the surface of as-prepared electrode is thermodynamically favorable, facilitating the electrochemical reaction. This work provides a new option in constructing tailorable electrodes with a well-defined hierarchical structure for supercapacitor and beyond.

Graphene Fiber-Based Wearable Supercapacitors: Recent Advances in Design, Construction, and Application

Fiber-based supercapacitors (FSCs) that display small volume, robust weavability, high power density, and long-term stability, have urgently become the indispensable power supplies in smart wearable industries. Graphene fiber is regarded as an ideal FSCs electrode due to its remarkable natures of anisotropic framework, adjustable layer spacing, porous structures, large specific-surface-area, processable electroactivity, and high electronical and mechanical properties. This review, mainly focuses on the graphene fiber-based supercapacitors (GFSCs), with respect to fiber preparation, micro-nanostructure modulation, supercapacitor construction, performance optimization, and wearable applications. Various fiber fabrication strategies, including wet-spinning, dry-spinning, film conversion, confined hydrothermal self-assembly, and microfluidic-spinning are presented for fiber's structure manipulation and large-scale production. Advanced nanostructures and electroactivity with various building principles, such as oriented alignment, porous network, hierarchical, and heterogeneous skeleton, engineered active-sites, and mechanical regulation are discussed for boosting charge transfer, and ionic kinetic diffusion and storage. Especially, the optimizing approaches for regular unit alignment, enhanced interlayer interactions, modulated structural nano-architecture are presented to deliver high capacitance and energy density. Moreover, the flexibility and stretchability of graphene fiber, together with wearable applications of power supply are highlighted. Finally, a short summary, current challenges and future perspectives for designing high energy density GFSCs are proposed.

The electrochemical kinetics of cerium selenide nano-pebbles: the design of a device-grade symmetric configured wide-potential flexible solid-state supercapacitor

Next-generation portable flexible electronic appliances require liquid-free energy storage supercapacitor devices to eliminate leakage and to support mechanical bending that is compatible with roll-to-roll technologies. Hence, a state-of-the-art process is presented to design a solid-state, wide-potential and flexible supercapacitor through the use of nano-pebbles of cerium selenide via a simple successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method that could allow an industry scalable route. We strongly believe that this is the first approach amongst physical and chemical routes not only for synthesizing cerium selenide in thin-film form but also using it for device-grade supercapacitor applications. The designed solid-state symmetric supercapacitor assembled from cerium selenide electrodes sandwiched by PVA-LiClO₄ gel electrolyte attains a wide potential window of 1.8 V with capacitance of 48.8 F g^-1 at 2 mV s^-1 and reveals excellent power density of 4.89 kW kg^-1 at an energy density of 11.63 W h kg^-1. The formed device is capable of 87% capacitive retention even at a mechanical bending angle of 175°. Lighting up a strip of 21 parallel connected red LEDs clearly demonstrates the practical use of the designed symmetric solid-state supercapacitor, aiming towards the commercialization of the product in the future.

Cold-Resistant Nitrogen/Sulfur Dual-Doped Graphene Fiber Supercapacitors with Solar-Thermal Energy Conversion Effect

Although graphene fiber-based supercapacitors are promising for wearable electronic devices, the low energy density of electrodes and poor cold resistance of aqueous electrolytes limit their wide application in cold environments. Herein, porous nitrogen/sulfur dual-doped graphene fibers (NS-GFs) are synthesized by hydrothermal self-assembly followed by thermal annealing, exhibiting an excellent capacitive performance of 401 F cm^-3 at 400 mA cm^-3 because of the synergistic effect of heteroatom dual-doping. The assembled symmetric all-solid-state supercapacitor with polyvinyl alcohol/H₂ SO₄ /graphene oxide gel electrolyte exhibits a high capacitance of 221 F cm^-3 and a high energy density of 7.7 mWh cm^-3 at 80 mA cm^-3 . Interestingly, solar-thermal energy conversion of the electrolyte with 0.1 wt % graphene oxide extends the operating temperature range of the supercapacitor to 0 °C. Furthermore, the photocatalysis effect of the dual-doped heteroatoms increases the capacitance of NS-GFs. At an ambient temperature of 0 °C, the capacitance increases from 0 to 182 F cm^-3 under 1 sun irradiation because of the excellent solar light absorption and efficient solar-thermal energy conversion of graphene oxide, preventing the aqueous electrolyte from freezing. The flexible supercapacitor exhibits a long cycle life, good bending resistance, reliable scalability, and ability to power visual electronics, showing great potential for outdoor electronics in cold environments.

Enhanced capacitive performance of a Ag-functionalized low crystalline Co3O4/graphene composite

The addition of Ag increased the capacitance of Co3O4 nanowires by about 5.8 times.

Knitting Controllable Oxygen-Functionalized Carbon Fiber for Ultrahigh Capacitance Wire-Shaped Supercapacitors

Wire-shaped supercapacitors (WSCs) are promising in wearable electronics but still face critical challenges of limited energy density. Nanostructured materials are dominant in high-performance active materials for improving energy density but are generally limited to wire-shaped electrodes (WSEs) with low mass loading (<0.5 mg cm^-1) because of sluggish ionic kinetics in thicker electrodes. To address this problem, we report here the treatment of microstructured carbon fiber (CF) via a surface engineering strategy, which adopts controllable oxygen (O) functional groups on the CF surface with both highly redox-active sites and fast electron/ion transport. By combining a knitting method, we demonstrate that a WSE with high mass loading (∼6.1 mg cm^-1) can operate at ultrahigh capacitance (435.1 mF cm^-1, 1539.7 mF cm^-2, and 68.4 mF cm^-3), exceeding that of most of the reported WSEs. An assembled WSC delivers up to 195.3 mF cm^-1 and 33 μW h cm^-1, surpassing the best carbon symmetric supercapacitor known, and even conducting polymers and metal oxide asymmetric devices. Thus, this work provides a viable method for a high-mass WSE and will stimulate the development of WSCs toward practical applications.

True Meaning of Pseudocapacitors and Their Performance Metrics: Asymmetric versus Hybrid Supercapacitors

The development of pseudocapacitive materials for energy-oriented applications has stimulated considerable interest in recent years due to their high energy-storing capacity with high power outputs. Nevertheless, the utilization of nanosized active materials in batteries leads to fast redox kinetics due to the improved surface area and short diffusion pathways, which shifts their electrochemical signatures from battery-like to the pseudocapacitive-like behavior. As a result, it becomes challenging to distinguish "pseudocapacitive" and "battery" materials. Such misconceptions have further impacted on the final device configurations. This Review is an earnest effort to clarify the confusion between the battery and pseudocapacitive materials by providing their true meanings and correct performance metrics. A method to distinguish battery-type and pseudocapacitive materials using the electrochemical signatures and quantitative kinetics analysis is outlined. Taking solid-state supercapacitors (SSCs, only polymer gel electrolytes) as an example, the distinction between asymmetric and hybrid supercapacitors is discussed. The state-of-the-art progress in the engineering of active materials is summarized, which will guide for the development of real-pseudocapacitive energy storage systems.

Graphene-Based Fibers: Recent Advances in Preparation and Application

Graphene-based fibers (GBFs) are macroscopic 1D assemblies formed by using microscopic 2D graphene sheets as building blocks. Their unique structure exhibits the same merits as graphene such as low weight, high specific surface area, excellent mechanical/electrical properties, and ease of functionalization. Furthermore, the fibrous nature of GBFs is intrinsically compatible with existing textile technologies, making them suitable for applications in flexible and wearable electronics. Recently, novel synthetic methods have endowed GBFs with new structures and functions, further improving their mechanical and electrical properties. These improvements have rapidly bridged the gaps between laboratory demonstrations and real-life applications in fiber-shaped batteries, supercapacitors, and electrochemical sensors. Recent advances in the fabrication, optimization, and application of GBFs are systematically reviewed and a perspective on their future development is given.

Effective immobilization of nanoscale Pd on a carbon hybrid for enhanced electrocatalytic performances: stabilization mechanism investigations

The grand challenge inhibiting the use of electrocatalysts is the degradation of active species which results in poor durability and long-term performances. Studying the origin of active metal particle stabilization mechanisms by using supports and the immobilization-induced changes of active particles is of significant importance. This study describes the preparation of Pd nanoparticles supported by carbon hybrid NPG-CN, revealing that the mass and specific activities (1987 A g-1 Pd and 28.7 A m-2) of this catalyst for formic acid oxidation significantly exceed those of commercial Pd/C, and excellent stability and enhanced CO-poisoning tolerance properties are obtained. The origin of this behavior is probed by surface analytical techniques and identical-location transmission electron microscopy (IL-TEM), and the enhanced activity of Pd/NPG-CN is ascribed to the electronic effect of the substrate, the high content of surface metallic Pd0, and the reduced extent of active Pd leaching and physical ripening during the FOA process compared with commercial Pd/C. In addition, theoretical calculations demonstrate that NPG-CN can efficiently trap Pd atoms, which accumulate and form Pd clusters at trapping (nucleation) sites.

Mass Production of Nanowire-Nylon Flexible Transparent Smart Windows for PM2.5 Capture

Designing large-area flexible transparent smart windows for high-efficiency indoor fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) capture is important to guarantee safe indoor environments. In this article, we demonstrate that large-area fabrication of flexible transparent Ag-nylon mesh can be performed not only to turn the indoor light illumination intensity as thermochromic smart windows after uniformly coating with thermochromic dye but also to purify indoor air as high-efficiency PM_2.5 filter. It takes only about $15.03 and 20 min to fabricate 7.5-m² Ag-nylon flexible transparent windows without any modification with a sheet resistance of as low as 8.87 Ω sq⁻¹ and optical transmittance of 86.05%. As an excellent PM filter (can be recycled after PM filtration), the removal efficiency is as high as 99.65% and the processing speed is high, which can reduce the PM_2.5 density from heavily polluted (248 μg·m⁻³, purple alert) to good (32.9 μg·m⁻³, green statement) in 50 s.

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A large-area flexible transparent window with low resistance and high transmittance

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The window can turn the indoor light intensity and capture fine particulate matter (PM_2.5)

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As a PM filter, the removal efficiency is high and the processing speed is fast