High-Temperature Supercapacitor with Ultra-Low Impurity Electrolyte
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional capacitors fail to maintain reliability and safety at elevated temperatures, particularly above 80° C, in applications such as oil-drilling, aerospace, aviation, and automotive industries, where they are required to operate continuously and efficiently.
Innovation Solution
An electrochemical double-layer capacitor design featuring electrodes made from materials like activated carbon, carbon fibers, graphene, and nanotubes, with a specialized electrolyte and separator, is developed to minimize impurities and moisture, ensuring low leakage current and efficient operation from -20 C to 300 C.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional capacitors are used at elevated temperatures, then they can operate in high-temperature environments, but their reliability and safety deteriorate above 80° C
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the electrolyte by using specific ratios of cyclic carbonates and chain carbonates with particular chain lengths (C4-C8), and controls impurity levels below 1000 ppm, enabling the capacitor to maintain reliability at temperatures up to 300° C
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite electrolyte system combining multiple carbonate solvents (cyclic and chain types) with specific lithium salt additives, creating a material composition that provides both high-temperature stability and low leakage current characteristics
2Duration of action of moving object
If capacitors operate continuously at high temperatures, then they can meet industrial application requirements, but their lifespan and performance stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes electrolyte composition parameters including solvent ratios, chain length specifications, and impurity thresholds to ensure performance stability during continuous high-temperature operation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary purification of the electrolyte to reduce impurities below 1000 ppm before assembly, preventing degradation mechanisms that would otherwise occur during continuous high-temperature operation
3Power
If high voltage is provided for automotive power lines, then power delivery capability is improved, but leakage current increases at elevated temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the electrolyte's electrical properties by selecting specific carbonate combinations and controlling impurity levels, achieving low leakage current even at high voltages (25 V and above) and elevated temperatures
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses simple carbonate ester molecules with specific chain lengths that provide stable electrical properties without complex additives, maintaining low leakage current through fundamental molecular structure selection rather than complex formulations
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The capacitor achieves reliable performance with reduced leakage current and impurities, maintaining efficiency across a wide temperature range, making it suitable for high-temperature applications in various industries.
Implementation Method 1
The resulting electrolytic solution is an ionic liquid that conducts electricity by ionic transport
Implementation Method 2
separated from each other by a separator porous to the electrolyte
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for an electrochemical double-layer capacitor for hostile environments. An electrochemical double-layer capacitor includes two electrodes wetted with an electrolyte, each electrode being attached to or in contact with or coated onto a current collector and separated from each other by a separator porous to the electrolyte, the electrodes, electrolyte and current collector containing less than 1,000 parts per million (ppm) of impurities, while exhibiting a leakage current less than 1 amp per liter of volume over a range of operating temperatures and at a voltage up to a rated voltage.