To store energy, batteries have long since been the only possible choice. Of all the different batteries available right now on the market, li-ion batteries have to be the very best. The batteries are highly efficient and capable of providing you with sufficient power.
But these are not the only options when it comes to power sources or power storage. There are different kinds of options that can be tried out. One of those options is a graphene supercapacitor battery. It doesn’t have the limitations of li-ion batteries and delivers considerably better performance.
This definitive guide will show you everything that you need to know about graphene supercapacitors vs li-ion batteries. Let’s take a look at the comparative analysis to see why graphene supercapacitors are the better option of the two.
What Is a Graphene Supercapacitor Battery?
Before we understand what a graphene supercapacitor battery is we need to talk about graphene itself. Graphene is actually an allotrope of carbon.
If you don’t know what that word means, don’t worry. It’s simply a material that is comprised of a single layer of atoms. These atoms are arranged in a hexagonal lattice nanostructure.
An interesting fact about graphene is that it’s one of the thinnest compounds known to man. But it has a large surface area The bigger surface area of graphene is also an important feature of the compound. It allows for better storage of electrostatic charges.
Graphene supercapacitors are lightweight which makes them perfect for use in batteries. They are also incredibly efficient at storing energy.
In fact, in some areas, it takes care of the limitations that we have to face with Li-ion batteries. Now, let’s dive deeper into graphene supercapacitor battery.
Limitations of a Li-Ion Battery
Even though Li-ion batteries are considered the standard for storing energy in many cases, we can’t deny there are obvious limitations to them.
The first of which is the reliance on chemical reactions. Because of that, these batteries have a designated life cycle. After charging and discharging for that many circles, the battery loses its capacity to store and deliver energy.
This in turn results in the battery having a shorter lifespan than the graphene supercapacitor batteries. It’s not so bad that they’re unusable. But the difference is quite noticeable.
Li-ion batteries are also expensive to manufacture and there are shipping restrictions. They cost less upfront, but they cost more in the long run. We’ll look at this in more detail in the upcoming section.
How Does a Graphene Supercapacitor Battery Work?
The main working principle behind the graphene supercapacitor battery depends on the supercapacitor. Do you need proof on this matter? Did you know supercapacitors can store 100 times more energy than standard capacitors?
Since supercapacitors are highly tolerant to low temperatures, graphene supercapacitor batteries are perfect as cold-weather batteries.
But how does this contraption work? That’s what we’re going to elaborate on right now.
Working Principle of a Graphene Supercapacitor Battery
Similar to a Li-ion battery, there are two phases when it comes to graphene supercapacitor battery. There’s the charging and the discharging.
The two metal plates inside the graphene supercapacitor battery act as the conductor for the battery. These are the conductors that act as carrier for positive and negative charges.
As for the insulator in between, it’s there to prevent any natural attraction or repulsion between the opposite charges.
It’s important to note that the metal plates are coated with a porous layer of activated carbon. And they are also dissolved in an electrolyte solvent. When the supercapacitor battery is charging, the ions form a layer on the electric plates.
Graphene Supercapacitor Batteries Vs Li-Ion Batteries
Now that you know a lot more about graphene supercapacitor batteries and li-ion batteries, we can get to the part that you’re actually here for. Let’s have a quick look at each of the ways graphene supercapacitor batteries are better than Li-ion batteries.
Charging and Discharging
As good as Li-ion batteries are, they still operate using electrodes and chemical reactions. There’s a limit to how much charging and discharging can take place. Although they are more efficient than other chemical cell batteries, compared to graphene supercapacitors they are not really as efficient as they’re thought to be.
With graphene supercapacitors, you can charge and discharge the batteries frequently. It’s particularly helpful in use cases where you require high current for a short period of time.
You can also charge graphene supercapacitors infinitely. At least on paper. But even if that’s not the case, most batteries will have a substantially high cycle life compared to a Li-ion battery.
Charge Time
It’s not that you can only charge and discharge frequently with a graphene supercapacitor battery. The time that it takes to charge one of these batteries is also significantly short.
The charge time for graphene supercapacitors is anywhere from 1 to 10 seconds. For Li-ion batteries that duration is in minutes. You might be waiting for 10 to 60 minutes depending on the Li-ion battery for it to get charged.
Cost in the Long Run
If you compare the upfront cost of a graphene supercapacitor battery, it’s very high compared to a Li-ion battery. But what you don’t see are the maintenance costs of lithium batteries in the long run. Here are some facts that will convince you.
The average lifespan of a Li-ion battery is around 5-10 years. And that’s considering you run into no issues with the battery in an ideal scenario. In comparison, graphene supercapacitors can last anywhere from 10-15 years.
Since there’s no chemical reaction taking place in a graphene supercapacitor battery, there would be minimal wear and tear that won’t require any maintenance. Consider a Li-ion battery in the same context. You’ll definitely need to spend more on maintenance to make sure the battery is operating optimally.
Operating Temperatures
If you need a battery for cold weather applications, you can’t go wrong there with a graphene supercapacitor battery. Yes, Li-ion batteries are good. But they’re not as good as a graphene supercapacitor.
A Li-ion battery charges at as low as 0 degrees Celsius all the way up to 45 degrees. And for the discharging, you can push it from -20 degrees to 60 degrees. What do you think the operating temperature is for a graphene supercapacitor battery?
Graphene supercapacitor batteries operate at the same temperature range. It can work well in as low as -40 degrees and can go well up to 65 degrees Celsius. In both ends of the spectrum, a graphene supercapacitor battery outperforms a Li-ion battery.
Advantages of Graphene Supercapacitor Batteries
It’s clear that graphene supercapacitor batteries are better in many ways. So what are some of the other advantages of these batteries? At Thinpack, we make sure to manufacture and construct the batteries in such a manner that you don’t have to miss out on any of the features.
- Graphene supercapacitor batteries are safe to use and charge incredibly fast.
- Unlike traditional batteries, graphene supercapacitor batteries do not degrade easily and last much longer.
- As there is no chemical reaction involved here with the absence of electrodes, these batteries are good for thousands of charging and discharging cycles.
- Graphene supercapacitor batteries from Thinpack come with a smart Battery Management System (BMS) to control and monitor them.
- Because of the supercapacitor, the graphene supercapacitor batteries are able to operate in extremely cold temperatures without losing capacity.
- The batteries are easy to install and are compatible with portable electrical devices.
Applications of Graphene Supercapacitor Batteries
It’s about time we check out the different applications of graphene supercapacitor batteries. This should help you understand how versatile the batteries are. It will also help you see if the graphene supercapacitor battery would serve any of your needs.
Graphene supercapacitor batteries are widely used for the following applications:
- Solar Power Grid.
- Electric Vehicles.
- Solar Lights.
- UPS.
- Mobile home.
Finishing Up
You might need a battery that performs as well as Li-ion batteries minus all of the limitations. This comparative analysis for graphene supercapacitor batteries vs Li-ion batteries should have given you the answer that you needed. The batteries outperform the best Li-ion batteries in every way and work even in the harshest of conditions.
Graphene supercapacitor batteries are the answer to all the limitations that we find in existing batteries. At Thinpack, you can get your battery specced out according to your requirements. All batteries constructed by us are done with materials that pass strict quality checks to ensure the best performance.