Cellulose nanocrystals-reinforced lignin-based composite gel membranes: Flexible and environmentally friendly quasi-solid polymer electrolytes for supercapacitors
摘要
To meet the demand for sustainable flexible energy storage, we present cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs)-reinforced lignin-based composite gel membrane with H₂SO₄ as a quasi-solid electrolyte for supercapacitors. In this system, alkaline lignin (AL), a water-soluble highly branched biopolymer, is crosslinked with poly(ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDGE), while CNCs are incorporated into the membrane formulations. This combination enhances not only mechanical integrity and flexibility, but also improves ionic conductivity and energy storage capability. The optimized CNCs/AL/PEGDGE-3 membrane with 3 wt% CNCs exhibits high flexibility, ionic conductivity (1.91 mS/cm), and specific capacitance (111.1 F/g at 0.1 A/g).
Graphical Abstract