A team of the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences have invented a type of power source with high power and energy density.
High power and energy density are the key issues in the development of electrochemical power sources to meet the growing demands from a wide range of applications.
Most traditional power sources, however, can hardly possess both such features. Fuel cells are a promising new energy technology in the fields of portable power sources, automobile power supply and stationary electric power plants. The commercialization of fuel cells is hampered by relatively low specific power density.
Meanwhile, the wide application of devices with high power density, such as supercapacitors, is also limited by insufficient specific energy density.
It is of great importance to the future of energy research and application to develop alternative power sources with both high power and energy density.
Based on previous studies of key electrode materials, direct methanol fuel cells and supercapacitors, the research team constructed the hybrid power system, achieving 80 percent more power density than direct methanol fuel cells.
Such work can shed light on the development of the next generation of power sources for portable and vehicle applications, said Liang Zhenxing, professor at South China University of Technology.(Xinhua)