Widespread demand and development of alternative energy sources along with the increasing need for improved energy infrastructure requires improved storage devices. To meet these demands, devices will need to possess high energy and power densities, high cyclability, and affordability. Typically, battery systems have high energy densities but low power densities which are necessary for quick dispersions of energy. Electrochemical double layer capacitors have high power densities but lack comparable energy densities. Work has been done to improve these energy densities by manipulating the qualities needed to increase voltage windows and capacitance. One such effort has been the development of hybrid capacitor devices utilizing surface capacitance and redox charge storage. Hybrid electrodes can be prepared by surface decoration of capacitive materials with microstructured metal oxides (e.g., Ru, Mn, V, Mo, W). Surface decoration of these metal oxides on carbon materials has been performed with some success. Performance of such materials has been optimized to promote the conductivity of the electrode material by limiting the loading of metal oxide materials. This is due to the insulating nature of many metal oxides. The research to be presented utilizes a technique of <i>in situ</i> addition of metal oxides and metal oxide precursors at higher loadings without inhibiting conductivity while maintaining sufficient access to capacitive and redox charge storage. Electrospun carbon nanofibers were prepared from blends of polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and polystyrene derivatives that have shown the ability to selectively shepherd metal oxides and metal oxide precursors into the channels. This will open up the potential for a facile technique to increase metal loadings while maintaining the conductivity of the carbon nanofiber electrode.

Immiscible polymer blends to shepherd metal oxide precursors into carbon nanofibers

255th National Meeting (2018)

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