Context:
Recently, Researchers have developed supercapacitors using activated carbon produced from coconut husks.
More on the news
- The researchers of the Government College for Women, Thiruvananthapuram, have devised a method to produce activated carbon, suitable for supercapacitor fabrication, from coconut husks, a major agricultural residue in Kerala.
- This supercapacitor is four times more efficient than the existing supercapacitors.
- The team leveraged the innovative microwave-assisted method designed at the Centralised Common Instrumentation Facility (CCIF) at the college.
- An advanced microwave pyrolysis reactor, can produce high-quality carbon within five minutes
- A supercapacitor is a type of capacitor that can store a large amount of energy, typically 10 to 100 times more energy per unit mass or volume compared to a common capacitor.
They have emerged as a vital component in the quest for sustainable energy storage solutions. However, finding the perfect supercapacitor electrode material remains a major challenge.
Benefits of Activated Carbon
- Activated carbon produced utilising microwave technology is relatively inexpensive and exhibits exceptional supercapacitor capability.
- The team was able to produce high-quality carbon within five minutes, eliminating impurities like ash and generating zero waste.
- This innovative method yields activated carbon with highly porous structures, making it an ideal material for various applications.
Centralised Common Instrumentation Facility (CCIF)
The Central Instrumentation Facility (CIF) has been established to provide a central facility consisting of the latest and advanced analytical Instruments to facilitate multidisciplinary research within and outside IIT Gandhinagar. It is funded by the State government and includes advanced instruments like
- Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectrometer Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analyser
- Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analyser
- fluorometer
- electrochemical workstation