Materials Science and Engineering Program and Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2016 Apr 4;55(15):4772-6. doi: 10.1002/anie.201600705. Epub 2016 Mar 9.
Wide-scale exploitation of renewable energy requires low-cost efficient energy storage devices. The use of metal-free, inexpensive redox-active organic materials represents a promising direction for environmental-friendly, cost-effective sustainable energy storage. To this end, a liquid battery is designed using hydroquinone (H2BQ) aqueous solution as catholyte and graphite in aprotic electrolyte as anode. The working potential can reach 3.4 V, with specific capacity of 395 mA h g(-1) and stable capacity retention about 99.7% per cycle. Such high potential and capacity is achieved using only C, H and O atoms as building blocks for redox species, and the replacement of Li metal with graphite anode can circumvent potential safety issues. As H2BQ can be extracted from biomass directly and its redox reaction mimics the bio-electrochemical process of quinones in nature, using such a bio-inspired organic compound in batteries enables access to greener and more sustainable energy-storage technology.
大规模开发可再生能源需要低成本、高效率的储能设备。使用无金属、廉价的氧化还原活性有机材料代表了一种有前途的环保、经济高效的可持续能源存储方向。为此，设计了一种使用对苯二酚 (H2BQ) 水溶液作为阴极电解液和石墨作为非质子电解质阳极的液流电池。工作电位可达 3.4 V，比容量为 395 mA h g(-1)，每个循环的稳定容量保持率约为 99.7%。如此高的电位和容量仅使用 C、H 和 O 原子作为氧化还原物种的构建块即可实现，并且用石墨阳极代替金属 Li 可以避免潜在的安全问题。由于 H2BQ 可以直接从生物质中提取，并且其氧化还原反应模拟了自然界中醌类的生物电化学过程，因此在电池中使用这种受生物启发的有机化合物可以实现更绿色、更可持续的储能技术。
