This review paper investigates the crucial role of nanotechnology in advancing energy storage technologies, with a specific focus on capacitors and batteries, including lithium-ion, sodium–sulfur, and redox flow.
How are nanomaterials being integrated into energy storage systems?
We delve into the various ways nanomaterials are being integrated into different energy storage systems, including a range of battery technologies such as lithium-ion batteries (LiBs), sodium–sulfur (Na-S) batteries, and redox flow batteries.
Nanotechnology significantly enhances energy storage systems through various mechanisms like increased surface area, improved charge transport, and electrode stability . Nanomaterials—such as nanowires, nanotubes, and nanoparticles—are larger in terms of surface area than similar kinds of materials.
The unique properties of nanomaterials also improve charge transport within energy storage devices, boosting the efficiency and performance of batteries and supercapacitors .
Therefore, through decades of research and development, today's energy systems are majorly based on nanomaterial-based electrodes which are fabricated by designing nanostructure and nano-scale-based electrode materials such as metal, metal oxides nanomaterials, carbon materials, etc.
What are the limitations of nanomaterials in energy storage devices?
The limitations of nanomaterials in energy storage devices are related to their high surface area—which causes parasitic reactions with the electrolyte, especially during the first cycle, known as the first cycle irreversibility—as well as their agglomeration.
Although the number of studies of various phenomena related to the performance of nanomaterials in energy storage is increasing year by year, only a few of them—such as graphene sheets, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), carbon black, and silicon nanoparticles—are currently used in commercial devices, primarily as additives (18).