Using Pectin for Energy Storage Devices
Authors: Chelfouh Nora , Rousselot Steeve , Coquil Gaël , Foran Gabrielle , Caradant Lea , Shoghi Fatemeh , Briqueleur Elsa , Laventure Audrey , Dolle Mickael 
Published: September 2023

Wearable and flexible printed electronics are more than ever in demand. The value of the flexible electronics market reached USD 26.5 million in 2021 and its revenue forecast will reach USD 63.1 million in 2030.[1] Increasing investments in research & development in these fields have already led to several achievements in the past years. Nevertheless, serious remains concerns about the ecological footprint of such technologies must be addressed early in their conception and throughout the whole electronics life cycle.[2]

In printed electronics, electrical energy is supplied by energy storage devices, such as batteries. Most of the time, these systems contain polymers that can be used either as electrolyte, e.g., solid polymer electrolyte or gel polymer electrolyte, to facilitate flexible electronics/batteries fabrication or as binders in positive or negative electrodes ensuring the mechanical cohesion within the composite electrodes.[4]. Several characteristics to meet environmental-friendly flexible electronics requirements. Biobased polymers are one of the promising alternatives in this regard. Their general affinity with water makes them suitable for aqueous rechargeable batteries, implying several technologies such as aqueous rechargeable lithium-ion batteries (ARLB) or zinc rechargeable batteries (ZRB). For instance, polymer hydrogel electrolytes have recently been investigated [3]: their strength lies in promising ionic conductivity (> 10-2 S.cm-1) while maintaining a sufficient mechanical strength and elasticity to be adaptable to flexible energy storage devices.

In this study, we developed a hydrogel electrolyte made of pectin, a polysaccharide contained in the cell plants’ wall, as an alternative to synthetic polymers in batteries. Hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds, together with bivalent cation interactions, allow the free-standing electrolyte gelation.[5] The gelation mechanism is first studied, using NMR spectroscopy together with thermal analysis. Then, electrochemical characterization is carried out to analyze the ionic conduction pathways of the gel electrolyte. Its electrochemical stability as well as galvanostatic cycling are investigated to figure out its ability to be used as a electrolyte in hybrid device, such as zinc-lithium-ion batteries.

Moving toward printed devices requires to take a closer look to the rheological properties of this system as well as its printability: these challenges will be addressed to ultimately develop an understanding of the impact of this material’s processing on the electrolyte and electrodes properties.[6]

References

[1]. Flexible Electronics Market Size to Hit US$ 63.1 MN by 2030. (May 2022). Acumen Research and Consulting, https://www.acumenresearchandconsulting.com/.

[2]. Baran, D.; Corzo, D.; Blazquez, G. Flexible Electronics: Status, Challenges and Opportunities. Frontiers in Electronics
2020, 1, 2673-5857. DOI: 10.3389/felec.2020.594003.

[3]. Liu, J.; Yuan, H.; Tao, X.; et al. Recent progress on biomass-derived ecomaterials toward advanced rechargeable lithium batteries. EcoMat
2020, 2 (1), e12019. DOI: 10.1002/eom2.12019.

[4]. Bresser, D.; Buchholz, D.; Moretti, A.; Varzi, A.; Passerini, S. Alternative binders for sustainable electrochemical energy storage – the transition to aqueous electrode processing and bio-derived polymers. Energy Environm Sci
2018, 11, 3096-3127. DOI: 10.1039/C8EE00640G.

[5]. Chelfouh, N.; Coquil, G.; Rousselot, S.; Foran, G.; Briqueleur, E.; Shoghi, F.; Caradant, L.; Dollé, M. Apple Pectin-Based Hydrogel Electrolyte for Energy Storage Applications. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering 2022

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Article ASAP
. DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.2c04600.

[6]. Clement, B.; Lyu, M.; Kulkarni, S. E.; Lin, T.; Hu, Y.; Lockett, V.; Greig, C.; Wang, L. Recent Advances in Printed Thin-Film Batteries. Engineering
2022, 13, 238-261. DOI: 10.1016/j.eng.2022.04.002.