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New paper published in Batteries&Supercaps on upcycling of supercapacitor electrodes for water desalination

New paper published on “Life after death: Re-purposing end-of-life supercapacitors for electrochemical water desalination” in Batteries & Supercaps.

Even the best supercapacitor, at some point, will reach its end-of-life. With limited amounts of precious elements (unlike lithium-ion batteries), elemental extraction of the active material’s components is not really attractive for supercapacitors. More interesting is to see the direct recycling of the active component, meaning mostly activated carbon in its various forms. But what else can we do with nanoporous carbons from spent supercapacitors?

Our work explores the re-purposing of end-of-life commercial supercapacitors as electrochemical desalination cells, using them for capacitive deionization. The research demonstrates that the carbon electrodes from disassembled supercapacitors can be modified and effectively used for water desalination via capacitive deionization. The modifications ranged from NaOH-etching to CO2 activation, showing varying degrees of efficiency and stability in desalinating low-salinity water. As a concept study, we show limitations and perspectives toward re-purposing in the context of electrochemical desalination.

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New paper published on NGC-MXene in Advanced Science

New research paper from our collaboration with Michael Naguib: “Nitrogen-Doped Graphene-Like Carbon Intercalated MXene Heterostructure Electrodes for Enhanced Sodium- and Lithium-Ion Storage” published in Advanced Science.

We’ve developed a novel N-doped graphene-like carbon intercalated Ti3C2Tx (NGC-Ti3C2Tx) heterostructure. But wait… why would one want to add something in-between the MX-layers, the wonderful interlayer space that should host lithium- and sodium-ion for battery application?


By adding a thin carbon layer, we do not block ion uptake but create additional intercalation sites above and beneath the carbon layer! This yields a reversible specific capacity of 305 mAh/g for sodium-ion batteries and 400 mAh/g for lithium-ion batteries.

Our findings address the critical challenge of low reversible capacity in many MXenes, making a contribution to the field of energy storage materials. By intercalating thin carbon layers into MXene, we provide a promising route to enable enhanced capacity for MXene battery electrodes, backed up both by experimental data and modeling data.

A heartfelt thanks to the wonderful international (co)authors KUN LIANG, Tao Wu, Sudhajit Misra, Chaochao Dun, Samantha Husmann, Kaitlyn Prenger, Jeffrey J. Urban, Raymond Unocic, De-en Jiang and Michael Naguib.

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New paper published on solvation-effects during carbon nanopore electrosorption in Carbon

New paper on solvation effects inside carbon nanopores during electrosorption published in Carbon.

Our British-German study explores the solvation effects on ion adsorption and electrosorption within carbon micropores, employing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to gain insights. Our data investigate how ionophilicity and ionophobicity – the tendency of ions to be uptaken by uncharged nanopores – affect the partitioning behavior of ions. The nanopore diameter significantly influences ion adsorption, with narrower pores creating higher barriers for ion entry. The research also reveals that ion-specific solvation effects impact on the charge storage mechanism, with ionophilic systems favoring counter-ion adsorption, while ionophobic systems tend toward co-ion ejection under applied voltage.

In a broader context, this work contributes to the ongoing efforts to enhance the efficiency of energy storage technologies, especially fast charge/discharge capable supercapacitors. By unraveling the interactions between ions and carbon nanopores, the research provides insights that could inform the development of more effective materials for supercapacitors and capacitive deionization, key components in sustainable energy systems.

Acknowledgments: Ryan J. Bragg (Lancaster University), Kieran Griffiths (Lancaster University), Imgon Hwang (The University of Manchester), Mantas Leketas (The University of Manchester), Kacper Polus (The University of Manchester), Robert Dryfe (The University of Manchester), and of course John M. Griffin (Lancaster University).#

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New paper on electrosynthesis of nitrogen fertilizer from algal biomass in Chemical Engineering Journal

New paper published in Chemical Engineering Journal on “A sustainable approach: Repurposing harmful algal biomass as carbon-based catalysts for nitrogen fertilizer electrosynthesis from nitrate and CO2“.

📜 Our research focuses on repurposing harmful algal blooms (HABs) biomass into carbon-based catalysts, specifically Cu1Mo1/NC, for the electrosynthesis of nitrogen fertilizers (urea and ammonia) from nitrate and CO2. This method not only addresses the environmental issue of HABs but also offers a sustainable approach to fertilizer production. The Cu1Mo1/NC catalyst demonstrated a high yield rate of 772 μg/h/mg(cat) for urea and 1531 μg/h/mg(cat) for ammonia, with a Faradaic efficiency of 68.4%.

🌐 The production of nitrogen fertilizers, essential for global food security, is currently dominated by energy-intensive processes such as Haber-Bosch, which contribute significantly to global CO2 emissions. Our approach explores how to mitigate these environmental impacts by using renewable resources and recycling waste. An approach like ours could potentially reduce CO2 emissions by millions of tons annually, equivalent to the emissions of hundreds of thousands of people.

🌱This study is a step towards sustainable agriculture, integrating renewable energy and waste recycling. Although the current system’s efficiency needs improvement to achieve positive profit and net CO2 emission reduction, it paves the way for future advancements in green and low-carbon fertilizer synthesis.

👩‍🔬👨‍🔬 Thanks to all of our partners: He Wang, Shuaishuai Man (who visited our laboratory 2021-2022), Han Wang, and Qun Yan.

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