Thermally chargeable supercapacitor based on nickel-coated nanoporous carbon

Abstract

Nanoporous carbon is coated by pure nickel via an electroless plating method. The nanoporous carbon provides a high-surface-area substrate, leading to a large capacitance; the nickel surface layer is of a high work function, resulting in a thermally sensitive electrode potential. Such a system is ideal for thermally chargeable supercapacitor (TCS) system, which converts low-grade heat (LGH) to electrical energy. The specific energy per thermal cycle per gram of electrode mass is ~1.8 mJ, with a temperature difference of 50°C.