A Biomimetic Cement-Based Solid-State Electrolyte with Both High Strength and Ionic Conductivity for...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Sustainable Building Materials

Background:

• Cement-based materials are crucial for modern construction but have high energy consumption.
• Developing cementitious materials for energy storage is key to achieving zero-energy buildings.
• Existing cement-based materials face limitations in balancing electrochemical performance with mechanical integrity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create a cement-based solid-state electrolyte with enhanced electrochemical and mechanical properties.
• To enable efficient energy storage within building materials.
• To advance the development of zero-energy and zero-carbon buildings.

Main Methods:

• An in-situ ice-templating strategy was employed during cement hydration to create organized layered microstructures.
• Fast-ion-conducting hydrogels were used to fill micropores, forming ion diffusion pathways.
• Biomimetic cement-based solid-state electrolytes (l-CPSSE) were fabricated.

Main Results:

• The l-CPSSE exhibited significantly improved specific bending (2.2x) and compressive (1.2x) strength compared to traditional cement.
• Achieved excellent ionic conductivity of 27.8 mS·cm⁻¹, surpassing most reported cement-based and hydrogel-based electrolytes.
• Demonstrated a full-cell specific capacity of 72.2 mF·cm⁻² in all-cement-based solid-state energy storage devices.
• Successfully operated a 5 × 5 cm² building model using series-connected l-CPSSE cells.

Conclusions:

• The developed l-CPSSE offers a promising solution for high-performance energy storage in buildings.
• This methodology provides a general approach for revolutionary cement-based electrolytes.
• The findings pave the way for self-energy-storage and zero-carbon buildings.