According to foreign media reports, a study by Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden showed that carbon fiber can be used as a battery electrode to directly store electrical energy.
This research opens up new opportunities for structural batteries, enabling carbon fiber to become part of the energy system. This versatile material can also significantly reduce the weight of future aircraft and vehicles, helping to solve the key challenges of electrification. In order to extend the cruising range after each battery charge, weight reduction is very important for the vehicle.
Leif Asp, a professor of materials and computational mechanics at Chalmers University of Technology, said: "Automobile body is not only a load-bearing element, but also serves as a battery." In addition to studying the functions that carbon fiber can achieve as a reinforcing material, Professor Leif Asp also studies carbon fiber Materials can store energy. Asp added: "Carbon fiber can also be used for other functions, such as collecting kinetic energy for sensors or conductors of energy and data. If all of the above functions can be achieved on a car, then the weight of the car can be reduced by 50%."
Asp is the head of a multidisciplinary research group. Recently, the group published a study on how carbon fiber microstructure affects electrochemical characteristics, that is, the potential of carbon fiber as an electrode for lithium ion batteries. So far, this field of research is a brand-new field that has not yet been developed.
The researchers studied the microstructure of different types of commercial carbon fibers, and found that carbon fibers with small but poor quality crystals have good electrochemical performance, but reduced strength; and carbon fibers with large and good quality crystals have better strength, but electrical The chemical properties are too low to be used in structural batteries. However, in this study, carbon fibers with good electrochemical properties are still slightly stronger than steel.
Researchers are currently working with the automotive and aviation industries. Leif Asp believes that for the aviation industry, it may be necessary to increase the thickness of the carbon fiber composite material to compensate for the rigidity of the structural battery, while increasing its energy storage capacity. In addition, system optimization based on weight, strength, stiffness and electrochemical characteristics is the key. Structural batteries may not be as efficient as traditional batteries, but they have load-bearing capabilities and are cost-effective from a system perspective. Moreover, because of the lower energy density, the structured battery does not contain volatile substances, so it is safer than traditional batteries.
The research was funded by the Swedish Innovation Agency (Vinnova), the Swedish Energy Agency (Swedish Energy Agency), the Swedish Research Council (Swedish Research Council) and the Alistore European Research Institute.
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