Environmentally Friendly Route for Fabricating Conductive Agent for Lithium-Ion Batteries: Carbon Nanoparticles Derived from Polyethylene

Here, we introduce an environmentally friendly way of fabricating carbon nanoparticles which can be utilized as conductive agent for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Polyethylene (PE), which comprises the largest portion of plastic waste, was used as a source for carbon nanoparticle synthesis. Sulfonat...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jihye Mok, Dalsu Choi, Suk Ho Bhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-03-01
Series:Catalysts
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4344/11/4/424
Description
Summary:Here, we introduce an environmentally friendly way of fabricating carbon nanoparticles which can be utilized as conductive agent for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Polyethylene (PE), which comprises the largest portion of plastic waste, was used as a source for carbon nanoparticle synthesis. Sulfonation allowed chemical structural transformation of innately non-carbonizable PE into a carbonizable conformation, and carbon nanoparticles could be successfully derived from sulfonated PE. Then, PE-derived carbon nanoparticles were used as conductive agents for LIBs, and assembled cells exhibited stable performance. Even though the performance is not as good as Super-P, utilization of PE as a source of conductive agent for LIBs might provide an economical advantage to upcycle PE.
ISSN:2073-4344