Role of a Printed Circuit Board Copper Clad Current Collector in Supercapacitor Application

• Published in: Journal of electronic materials 2019-09, Vol.48 (9), p.5835-5842
• Main Authors: Pilathottathil, Shabeeba, Thayyil, Mohamed Shahin, Pillai, M. P., Jemshihas, A. P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Activated carbon; Atomic force microscopy; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry and Materials Science; Circuit boards; Circuits; Contact resistance; Copper; Electrochemical analysis; Electronics and Microelectronics; Electrons; Energy storage; Flux density; Instrumentation; Ion currents; Materials Science; Microscopy; Optical and Electronic Materials; Printed circuit boards; Printed circuits; Scanning electron microscopy; Solid State Physics; Spectrum analysis; Supercapacitors; X-ray diffraction
• ISSN: 0361-5235; 1543-186X
• DOI: 10.1007/s11664-019-07365-6

It is highly desirable to develop an electrochemical double-layer supercapacitor with high energy and power densities, improved stability and other performance parameters. This goal can only be achieved by improving the structural and electrochemical properties of the electrodes, choosing an electrolyte with improved ionic conductivity and reducing the contact resistance of the current collector and their correlated effects. Here we investigated the effect of the current collector on the electrochemical performance of a supercapacitor by choosing different current collectors with activated carbon. Furthermore, we investigated their performance by determining their physicochemical properties via x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and FTIR spectroscopy. Additionally, electrochemical performance was ascertained using cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic discharge measurements and impedance spectroscopy of the fabricated supercapacitors. The results show that a supercapacitor with a printed circuit board copper clad can improve the total electrochemical performance of the device. Thus, we fabricated a supercapacitor with a high specific capacitance of 166 F/g and energy density of 23 Wh/kg. The supercapacitor was found to be the choice for use in energy storage applications.