From grass to battery anode: agricultural biomass hemp-derived carbon for lithium storage

Potential Development of Porous Carbon Composites Generated from the Biomass for Energy Storage Applications

Creating an innovative and environmentally friendly energy storage system is of vital importance due to the growing number of environmental problems and the fast exhaustion of fossil fuels. Energy storage using porous carbon composites generated from biomass has attracted a lot of attention in the research community. This is primarily due to the environmentally friendly nature, abundant availability in nature, accessibility, affordability, and long-term viability of macro/meso/microporous carbon sourced from a variety of biological materials. Extensive information on the design and the building of an energy storage device that uses supercapacitors was a part of this research. This study examines both porous carbon electrodes (ranging from 44 to 1050 F/g) and biomasses with a large surface area (between 215 and 3532 m2/g). Supposedly, these electrodes have a capacitive retention performance of about 99.7 percent after 1000 cycles. The energy density of symmetric supercapacitors is also considered, with values between 5.1 and 138.4 Wh/kg. In this review, we look at the basic structures of biomass and how they affect porous carbon synthesis. It also discusses the effects of different structured porous carbon materials on electrochemical performance and analyzes them. In recent developments, significant steps have been made across various fields including fuel cells, carbon capture, and the utilization of biomass-derived carbonaceous nanoparticles. Notably, our study delves into the innovative energy conversion and storage potentials inherent in these materials. This comprehensive investigation seeks to lay the foundation for forthcoming energy storage research endeavors by delineating the current advancements and anticipating potential challenges in fabricating porous carbon composites sourced from biomass.

Biomass-Derived Materials for Advanced Rechargeable Batteries

Biomass-derived materials generally exhibit uniform and highly-stable hierarchical porous structures that can hardly be achieved by conventional chemical synthesis and artificial design. When used as electrodes for rechargeable batteries, these structural and compositional advantages often endow the batteries with superior electrochemical performances. This review systematically introduces the innate merits of biomass-derived materials and their applications as the electrode for advanced rechargeable batteries, including lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries, potassium-ion batteries, and metal-sulfur batteries. In addition, biomass-derived materials as catalyst supports for metal-air batteries, fuel cells, and redox-flow batteries are also included. The major challenges for specific batteries and the strategies for utilizing biomass-derived materials are detailly introduced. Finally, the future development of biomass-derived materials for advanced rechargeable batteries is prospected. This review aims to promote the development of biomass-derived materials in the field of energy storage and provides effective suggestions for building advanced rechargeable batteries.

Fabrication of a Biomass-Derived Activated Carbon-Based Anode for High-Performance Li-Ion Batteries

Porous carbons are highly attractive and demanding materials which could be prepared using biomass waste; thus, they are promising for enhanced electrochemical capacitive performance in capacitors and cycling efficiency in Li-ion batteries. Herein, biomass (rice husk)-derived activated carbon was synthesized via a facile chemical route and used as anode materials for Li-ion batteries. Various characterization techniques were used to study the structural and morphological properties of the prepared activated carbon. The prepared activated carbon possessed a carbon structure with a certain degree of amorphousness. The morphology of the activated carbon was of spherical shape with a particle size of ~40-90 nm. Raman studies revealed the characteristic peaks of carbon present in the prepared activated carbon. The electrochemical studies evaluated for the fabricated coin cell with the activated carbon anode showed that the cell delivered a discharge capacity of ~321 mAhg^-1 at a current density of 100 mAg^-1 for the first cycle, and maintained a capacity of ~253 mAhg^-1 for 400 cycles. The capacity retention was found to be higher (~81%) with 92.3% coulombic efficiency even after 400 cycles, which showed excellent cyclic reversibility and stability compared to commercial activated carbon. These results allow the waste biomass-derived anode to overcome the problem of cyclic stability and capacity performance. This study provides an insight for the fabrication of anodes from the rice husk which can be redirected into creating valuable renewable energy storage devices in the future, and the product could be a socially and ethically acceptable product.

Three-Dimensional Hierarchical Porous Carbons Derived from Betelnut Shells for Supercapacitor Electrodes

Electrochemical energy storage (EES) systems are attracting research attention as an alternative to fossil fuels. Advances in the design and composition of energy storage materials are particularly significant. Biomass waste-derived porous carbons are particularly suitable for use in EES systems as they are capable of tuning pore networks from hierarchical porous structures with high specific surface areas. These materials are also more sustainable and environmentally friendly and less toxic and corrosive than other energy storage materials. In this study, we report the creation of a three-dimensional hierarchical porous carbon material derived from betelnut shells. The synthesized three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical porous carbon electrode showed a specific capacitance of 290 F g-1 using 1 M KOH as an electrolyte at a current density of 1 A g-1 in three-electrode systems. Moreover, it offered a high charge/discharge stability of 94% over 5000 charge-discharge cycles at a current density of 5 A g-1. Two-electrode symmetric systems show a specific capacitance of 148 F g-1, good cyclic stability of 90. 8% for 5000 charge-discharge cycles, and high energy density of 41 Wh Kg-1 at the power density of 483 W Kg-1 in aqueous electrolyte.

Biomass-Derived Carbon Materials: Controllable Preparation and Versatile Applications

Biomass-derived carbon materials (BCMs) are encountering the most flourishing moment because of their versatile properties and wide potential applications. Numerous BCMs, including 0D carbon spheres and dots, 1D carbon fibers and tubes, 2D carbon sheets, 3D carbon aerogel, and hierarchical carbon materials have been prepared. At the same time, their structure-property relationship and applications have been widely studied. This paper aims to present a review on the recent advances in the controllable preparation and potential applications of BCMs, providing a reference for future work. First, the chemical compositions of typical biomass and their thermal degradation mechanisms are presented. Then, the typical preparation methods of BCMs are summarized and the relevant structural management rules are discussed. Besides, the strategies for improving the structural diversity of BCMs are also presented and discussed. Furthermore, the applications of BCMs in energy, sensing, environment, and other areas are reviewed. Finally, the remaining challenges and opportunities in the field of BCMs are discussed.

A Modification of Palm Waste Lignocellulosic Materials into Biographite Using Iron and Nickel Catalyst

This paper presents an alternative way to maximize the utilization of palm waste by implementing a green approach to modify lignocellulosic materials into a highly crystalline biographite. A bio-graphite structure was successfully synthesized by converting lignocellulosic materials via a simple method using palm kernel shell (PKS) as a carbon precursor. This involved the direct impregnation of a catalyst into raw material followed by a thermal treatment. The structural transformation of the carbon was observed to be significantly altered by employing different types of catalysts and varying thermal treatment temperatures. Both XRD and Raman spectroscopy confirmed that the microstructural alteration occurred in the carbon structure of the sample prepared at 800 and 1000 °C using iron, nickel or the hybrid of iron-nickel catalysts. The XRD pattern revealed a high degree of graphitization for the sample prepared at 1000 °C, and it was evident that iron was the most active graphitization catalyst. The presence of an intensified peak was observed at 2θ = 26.5°, reflecting the formation of a highly ordered graphitic structure as a result of the interaction between the iron catalyst and the thermal treatment process at 1000 °C. The XRD observation was further supported by the Raman spectrum in which PKS-Fe1000 showed a lower defect structure associated with the presence of a significant amount of graphitic structure, as a low value of (Id/Ig) ratio was reported. An HRTEM image showed a well-defined lattice fringe seen on the structure for PKS-Fe1000; meanwhile, a disordered microstructure was observed for the control sample, indicating that successful structural modification was achieved with the aid of the catalyst. Further analysis from BET found that the PKS-Fe1000 developed a surface area of 202.932 m2/g with a pore volume of 0.208 cm3/g. An overall successful modification from palm waste into graphitic material was achieved. Thus, this study will help those involved in waste management to evaluate the possibility of a sustainable process for the generation of graphite material from palm waste. It can be concluded that palm waste is a potential source of production for graphite material through the adoption of the proposed waste management process.

Bioprocessing of waste biomass for sustainable product development and minimizing environmental impact

Growing concerns around the generation of biomass waste have triggered conversation around sustainable utilization of these seemingly waste materials as feedstock towards energy generation and production of chemicals and other value-added products. Thus, biotechniques such as utilization of microbes and enzymes derived thereof have become important avenues for green pretreatment and conversion of biomass wastes. Although the products of these bioconversions are greener at an overall level, their consumption and utilization still impact the environment. Hence it is important to understand the overall impact from cradle to grave through lifecycle assessment (LCA) techniques and find avenues of process optimization and better utilization of all the materials and products involved. Another factor to consider is overall cost optimization to make the process economically feasible, profitable and increase industrial adoption. This review brings forward these critical aspects to provide better understanding for the advancement of bioeconomy.