Annadanesh Shellikeri

Electrode Materials, Electrolytes, and Challenges in Nonaqueous Lithium-Ion Capacitors

Among the various energy-storage systems, lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) are receiving intensive attention due to their high energy density, high power density, long lifetime, and good stability. As a hybrid of lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors, LICs are composed of a battery-type electrode and a capacitor-type electrode and can potentially combine the advantages of the high energy density of batteries and the large power density of capacitors. Here, the working principle of LICs is discussed, and the recent advances in LIC electrode materials, particularly activated carbon and lithium titanate, as well as in electrolyte development are reviewed. The charge-storage mechanisms for intercalative pseudocapacitive behavior, battery behavior, and conventional pseudocapacitive behavior are classified and compared. Finally, the prospects and challenges associated with LICs are discussed. The overall aim is to provide deep insights into the LIC field for continuing research and development of second-generation energy-storage technologies.

A hybrid electrochemical device based on a synergetic inner combination of Li ion battery and Li ion capacitor for energy storage

Li ion battery (LIB) and electrochemical capacitor (EC) are considered as the most widely used energy storage systems (ESSs) because they can produce a high energy density or a high power density, but it is a huge challenge to achieve both the demands of a high energy density as well as a high power density on their own. A new hybrid Li ion capacitor (HyLIC), which combines the advantages of LIB and Li ion capacitor (LIC), is proposed. This device can successfully realize a potential match between LIB and LIC and can avoid the excessive depletion of electrolyte during the charge process. The galvanostatic charge-discharge cycling tests reveal that at low current, the HyLIC exhibits a high energy density, while at high current, it demonstrates a high power density. Ragone plot confirms that this device can make a synergetic balance between energy and power and achieve a highest energy density in the power density range of 80 to 300 W kg−1. The cycle life test proves that HyLIC exhibits a good cycle life and an excellent coulombic efficiency. The present study shows that HyLIC, which is capable of achieving a high energy density, a long cycle life and an excellent power density, has the potential to achieve the winning combination of a high energy and power density.

Visualizing electromagnetic fields in metals by MRI

Based upon Maxwell’s equations, it has long been established that oscillating electromagnetic (EM) fields incident upon a metal surface, decay exponentially inside the conductor, leading to a virtual absence of EM fields at sufficient depths. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) utilizes radiofrequency (r.f.) EM fields to produce images. Here we present a visualization of a virtual EM vacuum inside a bulk metal strip by MRI, amongst several findings. At its simplest, an MRI image is an intensity map of density variations across voxels (pixels) of identical size (=Δx Δy Δz). By contrast in bulk metal MRI, we uncover that despite uniform density, intensity variations arise from differing effective elemental volumes (voxels) from different parts of the bulk metal. Further, we furnish chemical shift imaging (CSI) results that discriminate different faces (surfaces) of a metal block according to their distinct nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) chemical shifts, which holds much promise for monitoring surface chemica...