Along with the surging demand for energy storage devices, the cost and availability of the materials remain dominant factors in slowing down their industrial application. The repurposing of waste asphalt into high-performance electrode materials is of significant interest, as it holds the potential to circumvent energy and environmental issues. Here, we report the controllable synthesis of asphalt-derived mesoporous carbon as an active material for electrocatalytic hydrogen gas capacitor (EHGC). The hierarchically porous carbon (HPC) with a high surface area of 1943.4 m 2 ·g −1 can operate in pH universal aqueous electrolytes in EHGC. It displays a specific energy and power density of 57 Wh·kg −1 and 554 W·kg −1 in neutral electrolyte as well as 52 Wh·kg −1 and 657 W·kg −1 in acidic electrolyte. Additionally, the charge storage mechanism of HPC–EHGC is studied with the help of Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Furthermore, the assembled HPC–EHGC device displays a discharge capacitance of 170 F·g −1 with an excellent capacitance retention rate of 100% up to 20000 cycles at 10 A·g −1 in acidic electrolyte. This work introduces a novel approach to converting waste asphalt into high-performance carbon for EHGC, achieving superior performance over commercial materials. By simultaneously addressing environmental waste issues and advancing energy storage technology, this study makes a significant contribution to sustainable materials science and next-generation battery development.
Developing structural energy storage materials (SESM) to address the range anxiety of aerial and aerospace vehicles is crucial. These materials must have a homogeneous, open structure, high specific energy, environmental adaptability, and ease of machining. Traditional capacitor-based or lithium-ion battery embedded structures fail to meet these demands simultaneously. In this study, the high energy density and environmental adaptability of zinc-ion batteries are integrated with the superior mechanical performance and ionic conductivity of a bi-continuous phase electrolyte, resulting in the creation of an open-structured composite. Through microphase separation simulation and optimization of mass transfer channels, the best formulation (MEP30) is achieved, featuring high mechanical strength (108 MPa Young’s modulus) and ionic conductivity (0.56 mS cm –1 ). An NH 4 V 4 O 10 @Carbon fiber (CF)||electrolyte||Zn@CF structure is developed, capable of multi-layer expansion. This design improves interlayer stress distribution and reduces weight, enhancing mechanical properties (408 MPa Young’s modulus) and system energy density (20 wh kg –1 ). The material can be machined into various shapes and remains functional after destructive processes like perforation and cutting. Under extreme conditions (low temperature, water immersion, low pressure) simulating aerial and aerospace environments, the multilayer material retains its energy density, offering a promising approach for SESM development.
Nickel-rich layered oxide cathodes promise ultrahigh energy density but is plagued by the mechanical failure of the secondary particle upon (de)lithiation. Existing approaches for alleviating the structural degradation could retard pulverization, yet fail to tune the stress distribution and root out the formation of cracks. Herein, we report a unique strategy to uniformize the stress distribution in secondary particle via Kirkendall effect to stabilize the core region during electrochemical cycling. Exotic metal/metalloid oxides (such as Al 2 O 3 or SiO 2 ) is introduced as the heterogeneous nucleation seeds for the preferential growth of the precursor. The calcination treatment afterwards generates a dopant-rich interior structure with central Kirkendall void, due to the different diffusivity between the exotic element and nickel atom. The resulting cathode material exhibits superior structural and electrochemical reversibility, thus contributing to a high specific energy density (based on cathode) of 660 Wh kg −1 after 500 cycles with a retention rate of 86%. This study suggests that uniformizing stress distribution represents a promising pathway to tackle the structural instability facing nickel-rich layered oxide cathodes.
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