DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Carbons with Regular Pore Geometry Yield Fundamental Insights into Supercapacitor Charge Storage

Journal Article · · ACS Central Science

We conduct molecular dynamics simulations of electrical double-layer capacitors (EDLCs) using a library of ordered, porous carbon electrode materials called zeolite templated carbons (ZTCs). The well-defined pore shapes of the ZTCs enable us to determine the influence of pore geometry on both charging dynamics and charge storage mechanisms in EDLCs, also referred to as supercapacitors. We show that charging dynamics are negatively correlated with the pore-limiting diameter of the electrode material and display signatures of both progressive charging and ion trapping. However, the equilibrium capacitance, unlike charging dynamics, is not strongly correlated to commonly used, purely geometric descriptors such as pore size. Instead, we find a strong correlation of capacitance to the charge compensation per carbon (CCpC), a descriptor we define in this work as the average charge of the electrode atoms within the coordination shell of a counterion. A high CCpC indicates efficient charge storage, as the strong partial charges of the electrode are able to screen counterion charge, enabling higher ion loading and thus more charge storage within the electrode at a fixed applied voltage. We determine that adsorption sites with a high CCpC tend to be found within pockets with a smaller radius of curvature, where the counterions are able to minimize their distance with multiple points on the electrode surface, and therefore induce stronger local partial charges.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities Division; European Research Council (ERC)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231; 714581
OSTI ID:
1591831
Journal Information:
ACS Central Science, Vol. 5, Issue 11; ISSN 2374-7943
Publisher:
American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 42 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (99)

Generating carbon schwarzites via zeolite-templating dataset January 2018
Review of Battery Systems for Electrically Powered Vehicles conference May 1968
Theory of Ragone plots journal December 2000
Electrochemical Supercapacitors book January 1999
Ueber einige Gesetze der Vertheilung elektrischer Ströme in körperlichen Leitern mit Anwendung auf die thierisch-elektrischen Versuche journal January 1853
Studien über electrische Grenzschichten journal January 1879
Sur la constitution de la charge électrique à la surface d'un électrolyte journal January 1910
LI. A contribution to the theory of electrocapillarity journal April 1913
Zur Theorie der Elektrolytischen Doppelschicht journal November 1924
Anomalous Increase in Carbon Capacitance at Pore Sizes Less Than 1 Nanometer journal September 2006
Relationship between the nanoporous texture of activated carbons and their capacitance properties in different electrolytes journal October 2006
A Universal Model for Nanoporous Carbon Supercapacitors Applicable to Diverse Pore Regimes, Carbon Materials, and Electrolytes journal July 2008
A superionic state in nano-porous double-layer capacitors: insights from Monte Carlo simulations journal January 2011
On the molecular origin of supercapacitance in nanoporous carbon electrodes journal March 2012
Highly confined ions store charge more efficiently in supercapacitors journal October 2013
Molecular Insights into Carbon Supercapacitors Based on Room-Temperature Ionic Liquids journal September 2013
Accelerating charging dynamics in subnanometre pores journal March 2014
Quantification of ion confinement and desolvation in nanoporous carbon supercapacitors with modelling and in situ X-ray scattering journal January 2017
Nanoporous carbide-derived carbon with tunable pore size journal August 2003
Ultrahigh-power micrometre-sized supercapacitors based on onion-like carbon journal August 2010
Nanoarchitectures for Metal–Organic Framework-Derived Nanoporous Carbons toward Supercapacitor Applications journal November 2016
Composite Carbon Nanotube/Carbon Electrodes for Electrical Double-Layer Super Capacitors journal January 2012
Nanoarchitectured Graphene-Based Supercapacitors for Next-Generation Energy-Storage Applications journal September 2014
Efficient storage mechanisms for building better supercapacitors journal May 2016
New Perspectives on the Charging Mechanisms of Supercapacitors journal April 2016
Templated Nanocarbons for Energy Storage journal July 2012
Investigation of the Ion Storage/Transfer Behavior in an Electrical Double-Layer Capacitor by Using Ordered Microporous Carbons as Model Materials journal May 2009
Three-Dimensionally Arrayed and Mutually Connected 1.2-nm Nanopores for High-Performance Electric Double Layer Capacitor journal February 2011
Increasing Capacitance of Zeolite-Templated Carbons in Electric Double Layer Capacitors journal January 2015
Ultraporous nitrogen-doped zeolite-templated carbon for high power density aqueous-based supercapacitors journal April 2018
Lanthanum-catalysed synthesis of microporous 3D graphene-like carbons in a zeolite template journal June 2016
First zeolite carbon replica with a well resolved X-ray diffraction pattern journal January 2006
Generating carbon schwarzites via zeolite-templating journal August 2018
The role and utilization of pseudocapacitance for energy storage by supercapacitors journal May 1997
On the Dynamics of Charging in Nanoporous Carbon-Based Supercapacitors journal January 2014
Connections Matter: On the Importance of Pore Percolation for Nanoporous Supercapacitors journal July 2019
Charge Me Slowly, I Am in a Hurry: Optimizing Charge–Discharge Cycles in Nanoporous Supercapacitors journal August 2018
Relation between the Ion Size and Pore Size for an Electric Double-Layer Capacitor journal March 2008
Anomalous or regular capacitance? The influence of pore size dispersity on double-layer formation journal September 2016
Quantitative Nano-Structure–Property Relationships for the Nanoporous Carbon: Predicting the Performance of Energy Storage Materials journal July 2018
Oscillation of Capacitance inside Nanopores journal December 2011
Complex Capacitance Scaling in Ionic Liquids-Filled Nanopores journal October 2011
Supercapacitor Capacitance Exhibits Oscillatory Behavior as a Function of Nanopore Size journal October 2011
Structural Characterization of Zeolite Beta
  • Newsam, J. M.; Treacy, M. M. J.; Koetsier, W. T.
  • Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, Vol. 420, Issue 1859 https://doi.org/10.1098/rspa.1988.0131
journal December 1988
Insights on the synthesis mechanism of green phenolic resin derived porous carbons via a salt-soft templating approach journal November 2016
On representing chemical environments journal May 2013
Ewald summation for systems with slab geometry journal August 1999
An Improved Four-Site Ionic Liquid Model journal October 2010
A computer simulation study of the dielectric properties of a model of methyl cyanide: I. The rigid dipole case journal April 1984
Numerical integration of the cartesian equations of motion of a system with constraints: molecular dynamics of n-alkanes journal March 1977
Rattle: A “velocity” version of the shake algorithm for molecular dynamics calculations journal October 1983
Influence of surface topology and electrostatic potential on water/electrode systems journal January 1995
Electrochemical interface between an ionic liquid and a model metallic electrode journal February 2007
Influence of solvation on the structural and capacitive properties of electrical double layer capacitors journal July 2013
Modeling the structural evolution of carbide-derived carbons using quenched molecular dynamics journal April 2010
Algorithms and tools for high-throughput geometry-based analysis of crystalline porous materials journal February 2012
VMD: Visual molecular dynamics journal February 1996
Fast Parallel Algorithms for Short-Range Molecular Dynamics journal March 1995
Nosé–Hoover chains: The canonical ensemble via continuous dynamics journal August 1992
Simulating Supercapacitors: Can We Model Electrodes As Constant Charge Surfaces? journal December 2012
Evaluation of the constant potential method in simulating electric double-layer capacitors journal November 2014
Studien über electrische Grenzschichten journal January 1879
Investigation of the Ion Storage/Transfer Behavior in an Electrical Double-Layer Capacitor by Using Ordered Microporous Carbons as Model Materials journal May 2009
Electrochemical Supercapacitors book January 1999
Novel 1,2,4-triazole analogues as mushroom tyrosinase inhibitors: synthesis, kinetic mechanism, cytotoxicity and computational studies journal May 2020
Relationship between the nanoporous texture of activated carbons and their capacitance properties in different electrolytes journal October 2006
Insights on the synthesis mechanism of green phenolic resin derived porous carbons via a salt-soft templating approach journal November 2016
Ultraporous nitrogen-doped zeolite-templated carbon for high power density aqueous-based supercapacitors journal April 2018
Algorithms and tools for high-throughput geometry-based analysis of crystalline porous materials journal February 2012
Nanoarchitectures for Metal–Organic Framework-Derived Nanoporous Carbons toward Supercapacitor Applications journal November 2016
Quantitative Nano-Structure–Property Relationships for the Nanoporous Carbon: Predicting the Performance of Energy Storage Materials journal July 2018
Connections Matter: On the Importance of Pore Percolation for Nanoporous Supercapacitors journal July 2019
Charge Me Slowly, I Am in a Hurry: Optimizing Charge–Discharge Cycles in Nanoporous Supercapacitors journal August 2018
Three-Dimensionally Arrayed and Mutually Connected 1.2-nm Nanopores for High-Performance Electric Double Layer Capacitor journal February 2011
Relation between the Ion Size and Pore Size for an Electric Double-Layer Capacitor journal March 2008
An Improved Four-Site Ionic Liquid Model journal October 2010
Supercapacitor Capacitance Exhibits Oscillatory Behavior as a Function of Nanopore Size journal October 2011
Simulating Supercapacitors: Can We Model Electrodes As Constant Charge Surfaces? journal December 2012
Molecular Insights into Carbon Supercapacitors Based on Room-Temperature Ionic Liquids journal September 2013
Oscillation of Capacitance inside Nanopores journal December 2011
Complex Capacitance Scaling in Ionic Liquids-Filled Nanopores journal October 2011
On the Dynamics of Charging in Nanoporous Carbon-Based Supercapacitors journal January 2014
Lanthanum-catalysed synthesis of microporous 3D graphene-like carbons in a zeolite template journal June 2016
Highly confined ions store charge more efficiently in supercapacitors journal October 2013
Efficient storage mechanisms for building better supercapacitors journal May 2016
Accelerating charging dynamics in subnanometre pores journal March 2014
Nanoporous carbide-derived carbon with tunable pore size journal August 2003
Strain-induced room-temperature ferroelectricity in SrTiO3 membranes journal June 2020
Stepwise gating of the Sec61 protein-conducting channel by Sec63 and Sec62 journal January 2021
First zeolite carbon replica with a well resolved X-ray diffraction pattern journal January 2006
Zeolite-templated carbons – three-dimensional microporous graphene frameworks journal January 2018
Sur la constitution de la charge électrique à la surface d'un électrolyte journal January 1910
Electrochemical interface between an ionic liquid and a model metallic electrode journal February 2007
Influence of surface topology and electrostatic potential on water/electrode systems journal January 1995
Evaluation of the constant potential method in simulating electric double-layer capacitors journal November 2014
LI. A contribution to the theory of electrocapillarity journal April 1913
Anomalous Increase in Carbon Capacitance at Pore Sizes Less Than 1 Nanometer journal September 2006
Increasing Capacitance of Zeolite-Templated Carbons in Electric Double Layer Capacitors journal January 2015
Review of Battery Systems for Electrically Powered Vehicles conference May 1968

Cited By (1)

Microscopic Simulations of Electrochemical Double-Layer Capacitors journal April 2022