Quinone‐Based Redox Supercapacitor Using Highly Conductive Hard Carbon Derived from Oak Wood

Abstract

In this study, the use of biorefined wood materials in the fabrication of organic redox supercapacitors is proposed. Oak‐derived hard carbon (HC) is revealed to have a nanographite domain structure, showing conductivity as high as that of artificial graphite. The CO2‐activated hard carbon (A–HC) has a conductivity one order higher than that of commercial activated carbon, with a surface area of 1126 m2 g−1. The energy densities of supercapacitors composed of a tetrachlorohydroquinone cathode and anthraquinone (AQ) or 1,5‐dichloroanthraquinone (DCAQ) anode are 19.0 and 13.8 Wh kg−1, respectively. The utilization rate of AQ with A–HC is 97.6% (250.9 mAh g−1), which is much higher than those in previous reports (≈80%). After 1000 cycles, 91.0% of the discharge capacity is retained when the DCAQ anode is used. Biorefined wood materials lead to a remarkable improvement in the operation of organic supercapacitors. This is intriguing, because the functional carbon material herein is easily prepared from a natural resource, wood, whereas numerous studies have prepared such materials from artificial chemical sources. Therefore, the use of oak‐derived HC enhances the usability of organic active materials for energy storage devices and potentially has a far‐reaching impact on the environment.

Soft materials for wearable supercapacitors

“…with tissue, and reduced interface resistance for the stable signal detection when applied in bioelectronics [237,238]. Furthermore, PDA as a quinone-rich polymer, have already been applied in energy storage materials due to the redox behavior of quinone [239][240][241]. rGO was also extensively applied as electrodes for SCs [242,243].…”

Composites and Copolymers Containing Redox-Active Molecules and Intrinsically Conducting Polymers as Active Masses for Supercapacitor Electrodes—An Introduction

“…At 20 wt%, this figure was 2.5. Activated carbon impregnated (by adsorption) with tetrachlorohydroquinone at the positive electrode and AQ or 1,5-dichloroanthraquinone (see Figure 8) at the negative electrode has been examined in supercapacitor cells [74]. Activated carbon modified with various quinones by sublimation showed enhanced capacitances, plain AQ yielded the highest increase [75].…”

“…After initial electroreduction of 2-nitro-1-naphthol into 2-amino-1-naphthol subsequently in charge/discharge of the electrode the quinone/hydroquinone redox reaction was employed for additional charge storage beyond the capacitive storage at the electrolyte solution/carbon interface (Figure 9). Activated carbon impregnated (by adsorption) with tetrachlorohydroquinone at the positive electrode and AQ or 1,5-dichloroanthraquinone (see Figure 8) at the negative electrode has been examined in supercapacitor cells [74]. carbon with the quinone [72,73].…”

“…Activated carbon impregnated (by adsorption) with tetrachlorohydroquinone at the positive electrode and AQ or 1,5-dichloroanthraquinone (see Figure 8 ) at the negative electrode has been examined in supercapacitor cells [ 74 ].…”

Synthesis of unused-wood-derived C-Fe-N catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction by heteroatom doping during hydrothermal carbonization and subsequent carbonization in nitrogen atmosphere

“…While we plan to conduct research using Japanese cedar SD as a raw material in the future, in this study, we used SD from our collaborators as a raw material. Our group has previously used regional-wood-derived carbon (sometimes called biochar) to produce materials for energy storage devices such as organic batteries [16] and Na-ion batteries [17]. In addition, Abe et al [18] developed ORR catalysts derived from organic substances.…”