A Novel Fe-doped Metal Oxide Electrode Material for High Energy Densities Within Intercalated Pseudo Supercapacitors

The current lithium-ion battery technology is expensive and not environmentally sustainable. While supercapacitors are an alternative they have very low energy densities making them impractical to use. Therefore, this project aimed to create an energy source that solved the problems batteries had while improving the super-capacitor technology. This would be achieved by creating a cost-effective pseudo-super-capacitor. This project hence synthesized a novel electrode material. To ensure the faradaic redox reaction occurred the oxide MnO2 was used. This MnO2 was synthesized with the sol-gel process to create 1D nano-rods. It was then doped with Fe to weaken the hydrogen bonds in the MnO2 to create oxygen vacancies. These oxygen vacancies and 1D nano-rods improve mobility, conductivity, and structural stability. The novel electrode material was combined with the binder solution and current collector to make the final pseudo-super-capacitor. This not only allowed for the overall capacitance to be higher than commercial products with a capacitance of 0.90F but also allowed for the energy density to be 5x higher with around 5.337(Wh/kg). The power density was also not compromised being 2456.163 (W/kg). The prototype has the potential to store 900 watts at the mere cost of $10.03. Future studies include increasing capacitance and energy density but also experimenting with nano synthesization techniques. With a power source as potent as this many science fields will gain flexibility and low-income communities can gain access to a reliable power source. This prototype will have a transformative impact on society.