Simultaneous Wide and Small Angle Operando Neutron Total Scattering to Probe Electrolyte Ordering in Supercapacitors

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Energy in supercapacitors is stored in the so-called electrical double layer (EDL)of adsorbed ions on high surface area electrodes. However, despite its immenseimportance for supercapacitors, the structure of EDL has never been measuredin atomistic detail due to a lack of suitable methods.Atomistically-resolved measurements of these systems can only be provided byneutron scattering augmented using multiple isotopically-distinct datasets,analysed with the aid of models. Small-angle scattering gives details of the porestructure in the electrodes, with changes in intensity directly related toelectrolyte composition in the pores. Analysis of the wide angle scatteringreveals the solvation structure of the ions and the organisation of the ions andof hydrogen-containing solvents at the electrode surfaces that underpin chargestorageThis 4-year PhD project will develop an operando electrochemical cell to makedetailed measurements of the EDL in supercapacitors on NIMROD as a functionof charge. A further development will be the enhancement of simulation-basedanalysis tools specific to high surface area and charged materials, helping toelucidate the structure and mechanism of EDL formation.