Hydrogels: Synthesis and Recent Advancements in Electrochemical Energy Storage

Abstract

The current shift from traditional to renewable energy sources is a driving force behind the development of electrochemical storage technologies such as supercapacitors, batteries, and fuel cells. Hydrogels exist as an incredibly versatile and tailorable alternative to many of the components for these devices. This chapter aims to summarize the characteristic requirements of different electrochemical devices for optimal performance and demonstrate, with a top-down engineering approach, how hydrogels can be synthesized to fulfill their role in a wide range of applications. This chapter starts with a general introduction regarding how hydrogels can be a suitable alternative by functioning as a viable component that can be incorporated into energy storage devices. The second section describes some of the parameters considered for the synthesis of hydrogels and some of their core concepts related to the use of crosslinking agents and solvents for obtaining interconnected networks structures, which are one of the main factors that give hydrogels their inherently high surface area and porosity. The following sections present some of the current studies related to the use of hydrogels for energy devices.