Low-temperature carbonized MXene/protein-based eggshell membrane composite as free-standing electrode for flexible
Weimin Chen1, Zhao Li1, Kai Yang1
1Co-Innovation Center of Efficient Processing and Utilization of Forest Resources, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China; International Innovation Center for Forest Chemicals and Materials, Nanjing 210037, China; Jiangsu Engineering Research Center of Fast-growing Trees and Agri-fiber Materials, Nanjing 210037, China.
Researchers developed flexible, custom-sized electrodes from reconstituted eggshell membrane (REM) coated with MXene (Ti3C2) and carbonized. This CREM/T material offers high conductivity and capacitance for advanced supercapacitors, overcoming limitations of traditional carbonized eggshell membranes.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Electrochemistry
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Carbonized eggshell membrane (EM) has limitations for supercapacitors due to cost, brittleness, and fixed dimensions.
- Developing flexible, customizable, and high-performance electrode materials is crucial for advanced energy storage devices.
Purpose of the Study:
- To engineer a novel, flexible, and size-customizable electrode material for supercapacitors.
- To overcome the limitations of traditional carbonized eggshell membranes.
- To enhance electrochemical performance by incorporating Ti3C2 MXene.
Main Methods:
- Reconstituted eggshell membrane (REM) was developed for flexibility and customizability.
- Ti3C2 MXene nanosheets were coated onto REM and low-temperature carbonized (350 °C) to form CREM/T.
- Electrochemical performance was evaluated using capacitance and rate capability measurements.
- An all-EM-based supercapacitor was fabricated using REM as a separator and CREM/T as electrodes.
Main Results:
- The CREM/T material exhibited high electrical conductivity (78.1 S cm⁻¹).
- It demonstrated a large capacitance of 1729 mF cm⁻² at 0.5 mA cm⁻² and retained 82% capability at high current density.
- The fabricated supercapacitor showed a high energy density of 16.1 μW h cm⁻² and stable performance during bending.
Conclusions:
- The developed CREM/T material offers a promising flexible and high-performance electrode for supercapacitors.
- This approach effectively utilizes eggshell membrane waste for advanced energy storage applications.
- The integration of MXene enhances conductivity and electrochemical activity, enabling superior device performance.
