Dr. Rajeev Kumar of CSIR-Advanced Materials and Processes Research Institute, Bhopal, a recipient of the INSPIRE Faculty Award, instituted by the Science & Technology Department, Govt. from India, is developing porous carbon materials that have the potential to replace lead lattice in lead acid batteries.
It may also be useful for power electronics heat sinks, space electromagnetic interference shielding, hydrogen storage, and lead acid battery electrode and water purification systems
Today’s grid-scale energy storage industry is dominated by lithium-ion batteries due to their higher energy density and specific power and long service life. However, there are some serious concerns regarding Li-ion batteries, such as safety risk, limited resource supply, high cost and lack of recycling infrastructure. This requires the development of an alternative battery system with lower environmental problems, economic and higher energy density. As a result, lead sulfuric acid batteries are still one of the most reliable, economical and environmentally friendly options. Electrodes in the lead acid batteries, however, suffer from the problem of heavy weight, corrosion, poor thermal stability and diffusion of electrolytes in one dimension, which ultimately affects the output power.
Recently, Dr. Rajeev, together with his research group, developed lightweight carbon foam with a density of less than 0.3 g / cc, high porosity of more than 85%, good mechanical strength. His group has published about 16 articles on carbon foam since 2016 in highly renowned scientific journals (after taking inspiration from the faculty). The foam is highly resistant to corrosion, has good electrical and thermal conductivity with a large surface area and has recently attracted a lot of attention due to their potential applications in various areas.
“Through this fellowship, we have developed carbon foam with improved properties. We rely heavily on energy storage systems, such as lead acid batteries used in cars and households. The lightweight carbon foam can replace the lead acid batteries, which are heavy, corrosive and have a poor thermal stability. “Dr. Rajeev Kumar explained.
The carbon foam developed under the INSPIRE fellowship will also be a cost-effective removal of arsenic, oil and other metals from contaminated water. These carbon foams are non-toxic, easy to manufacture, affordable and water insoluble. The manufacture of carbon foam raw material is readily available everywhere, and there is no need for costly manufacture of carbon foam equipment and filtration. Such materials can be used safely in remote areas where the power supply is scarce.
(With inputs from PIB)
