Wood, the raw material for CNF, is expected to be a key material for global regeneration as a carbon-neutral material. However, its current applications are limited to mechanical, chemical, and medical fields.
A research group led by Mikio Fukuhara (research fellow), Director Fumihiko Hasegawa, Prof. Toshiyuki Hashida (Graduate School of Engineering), Nobuhisa Fujima (Shizuoka University) MitsuhiroTakeda (National Institute of Technology, Sendai College) and the CNF Research Laboratory of Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.’s Research and Development Division has jointly discovered that CNF possesses powerful energy storage capabilities. By creating a nano-sized uneven surface through controlled CNF surface morphology, has achieved the world’s first successful development of a dry, lightweight supercapacitor.
This technology features a wide operating temperature range and high voltage tolerance (~400V) because it uses no electrolyte solution in its composition. It enables short-duration high-voltage charging, opening possibilities for charging in air or vacuum environments. Furthermore, the use of nano-sized CNF has made large-capacity energy storage feasible, paving the way for the world’s first “paper electronics.”
Going forward, we will introduce NEMS processing technology to achieve integration and stacking, thereby enhancing specific power and energy density for use as power storage devices in low-voltage applications.
The results were published in Scientific Reports on March 19, 2021.
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