Fully 3D Printed and Disposable Paper Supercapacitors

Abstract

With the development of the internet‐of‐things for applications such as wearables and packaging, a new class of electronics is emerging, characterized by the sheer number of forecast units and their short service‐life. Projected to reach 27 billion units in 2021, connected devices are generating an exponentially increasing amount of electronic waste (e‐waste). Fueled by the growing e‐waste problem, the field of sustainable electronics is attracting significant interest. Today, standard energy‐storage technologies such as lithium‐ion or alkaline batteries still power most of smart devices. While they provide good performance, the nonrenewable and toxic materials require dedicated collection and recycling processes. Moreover, their standardized form factor and performance specifications limit the designs of smart devices. Here, exclusively disposable materials are used to fully print nontoxic supercapacitors maintaining a high capacitance of 25.6 F g−1 active material at an operating voltage up to 1.2 V. The presented combination of digital material assembly, stable high‐performance operation, and nontoxicity has the potential to open new avenues within sustainable electronics and applications such as environmental sensing, e‐textiles, and healthcare.

A Review on Printed Electronics: Fabrication Methods, Inks, Substrates, Applications and Environmental Impacts

“…In parallel with the emerging energy harvesting technologies, scientific advancements in energy storage devices play vital role in a wide variety of low-power or self-powered electronics applications [123][124][125]. Recently, Xing et al [126], Sundriyal and Bhattacharya [87] and Aeby et al [127] demonstrated flexible and disposable printed supercapacitors, also known as electric double-layer capacitors (EDLCs), by integration of electrodes and separators onto lignocellulosic substrates such as paper. In the upcoming years, the research on energy storage devices are expected to advance the current state-of-the-art and result in more reliable, autonomous and recyclable IoT devices.…”

3D Printed Ti3C2Tx MXene/Cellulose Nanofiber Architectures for Solid‐State Supercapacitors: Ink Rheology, 3D Printability, and Electrochemical Performance

“…[ 4 ] So far, an exciting progress has been made in preparing printable conductive inks utilizing different materials such as graphene, [ 5 ] carbon nanotubes, [ 6 ] and activated carbon. [ 3d,7 ] These inks hold great promise in 3D printing energy storage electrodes.…”

Recent Advances in Sustainable Wearable Energy Devices with Nanoscale Materials and Macroscale Structures

“…Reproduced with permission. [ 280 ] Copyright 2021, Wiley‐VCH. g) Digital images of honeycomb‐like SCs under different strains.…”

“…reported fully 3D‐printed and disposable micro‐SCs, as shown in Figure 18f. [ 280 ] The as‐prepared micro‐SC maintained its initial high capacitance (25.6 F g −1 ) even under a pressure of 200 kPa. The primary conclusion is that a disposable energy device with good performance can be manufactured through a simple eco‐friendly process that minimizes material waste and toxic substance utilization.…”

“…f) Schematic of the disposable SCs, including illustrations of the electrolyte-induced electrode swelling and electrostatic double layer. Reproduced with permission [280]. Copyright 2021, Wiley-VCH.…”