The increasing need for renewable energy demands continuous studies of environmentally friendly, cost efficient, and sustainable batteries. With some of the problems that current alkaline batteries have such as the flammability of the electrolytes or dendrite formation, there is a favorable draw towards other cathode and anode materials, specifically organic batteries. Recent studies show different derivatives of quinones, which can have a specific capacity as high as 405 mAh g-1, as a suitable replacement for the anode of batteries. Quinone batteries take advantage of the proton coupled electron transfer (PCET) process in protic solvents to store charge. In this study, we investigate the PCET pathway of a 1,4-tetrachlorobenzoquinone (TCBQ) battery via operando Raman spectroscopy. Our results show spectral evolution of TCBQ to the doubly protonated reduced form upon discharging, and a reformation of the deprotonated and oxidized form upon charging. Evidence from X-ray diffraction and theoretical calculations also show this evolution as well as the possibility of a phase change during this process.

Operando Raman spectroscopy of quinone batteries

2019 Spring National Meeting

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