Capacitor breakthrough
Oct. 21, 2015, was the day that Doc Brown and Marty McFly landed in the future in their DeLorean, with time travel made possible by a "flux capacitor." While the flux capacitor still conjures sci-fi images, capacitors are now key components of portable electronics, computing systems, and electric vehicles.

This is a diagram of the dielectric capacitor research developed by a University of Delaware-led research team.
Kathy F. Atkinson/University of Delaware
In contrast to batteries, which offer high storage capacity but slow delivery of energy, capacitors provide fast delivery but poor storage capacity. A great deal of effort has been devoted to improving this feature -- known as energy density -- of dielectric capacitors, which comprise an insulating material sandwiched between two conducting metal plates.
Now, a group of researchers at the University of Delaware and the Chinese Academy of Sciences has successfully used nanotechnology to achieve this goal.
"With our approach, we achieved an energy density of about two watts per kilogram, which is significantly higher than that of other dielectric capacitor structures reported in the literature," says Bingqing Wei, professor of mechanical engineering at UD.
"To our knowledge, this is the first time that 3D nanoscale interdigital electrodes have been realized in practice," he adds. "With their high surface area relative to their size, carbon nanotubes embedded in uniquely designed and structured 3D architectures have enabled us to address the low ability of dielectric capacitors to store energy."
One of the keys to the success of the new capacitor is an interdigitated design -- similar to interwoven fingers between two hands with "gloves" -- that dramatically decreases the distance between opposing electrodes and therefore increases the ability of the capacitor to store an electrical charge.
Another significant feature of the capacitors is that the unique new three-dimensional nanoscale electrode also offers high voltage breakdown, which means that the integrated dielectric material (alumina, Al2O3) does not easily fail in its intended function as an insulator.
"In contrast to previous versions, we expect our newly structured dielectric capacitors to be more suitable for field applications that require high energy density storage, such as accessory power supply and hybrid power systems," Wei says.
Original publication
Other news from the department science

Get the chemical industry in your inbox
By submitting this form you agree that LUMITOS AG will send you the newsletter(s) selected above by email. Your data will not be passed on to third parties. Your data will be stored and processed in accordance with our data protection regulations. LUMITOS may contact you by email for the purpose of advertising or market and opinion surveys. You can revoke your consent at any time without giving reasons to LUMITOS AG, Ernst-Augustin-Str. 2, 12489 Berlin, Germany or by e-mail at revoke@lumitos.com with effect for the future. In addition, each email contains a link to unsubscribe from the corresponding newsletter.
Most read news
More news from our other portals
Last viewed contents

Power at sea: towards high-performance seawater batteries - Scientists develop an efficient synthesis route to produce a novel co-doped anode material for rechargeable seawater batteries
State-of-the-art polyolefin logistics centre reinforces SABIC’s long-term commitment to serving its UK customers

Green methanol for shipping and industry: € 10.4 Mio. for the "Leuna100" project - A consortium of two Fraunhofer institutes, DBI-Gastechnologisches Institut Freiberg, Technical University of Berlin and C1 makes industrial history at the Leuna site
William_Justin_Kroll
Robert_Kane_(chemist)
Dow Corning Expands Central & Eastern Europe Operations - Warsaw Office to Help Eastern European Businesses Innovate and Grow
Category:Nobel_laureates_in_Chemistry
Sodium_silicate

It’s all about the sausage - Choosing the right proteins can improve the mouthfeel of vegetarian sausages
