Cation–π Hydrogel Electrolyte for Flexible All‐Solid‐State Supercapacitors with Excellent Mechanical Deformation and Low‐Temperature Tolerance

Flexible supercapacitors are promising power sources for new-generation wearable electronics. However, their electrochemical performance often deteriorates under mechanical deformation and low-temperature environments. Here, a flexible supercapacitor is developed by sandwiching a hydrogel electrolyte between two electrodes. To address performance challenges, cation-π crosslinking sites are incorporated into the hydrogel network. These dynamic crosslinking sites act as efficient ion-hopping centers, imparting the hydrogel electrolyte with high fracture strength (1.8 MPa), strong ionic conductivity (3.9 S m<sup>-1</sup>), and excellent anti-freezing properties. Furthermore, the hydrogel forms cation-π interactions with carbon nanotube-based composite electrodes, facilitated by the reaction between the indole groups and Na<sup>+</sup> in the electrodes. This strong interfacial bonding minimizes electrode-electrolyte displacement during deformation, reducing interfacial resistance and enhancing charge transport efficiency. As a result, the cation-π hydrogel electrolyte enables the supercapacitor to achieve high energy storage, outstanding mechanical deformation tolerance, and robust performance at low temperatures. The device maintains 89.8% of its initial capacitance after 5000 bending cycles and retains 70.9% capacitance at -40 °C-significantly surpassing previously reported methods. This work presents an innovative strategy for designing high-performance hydrogel electrolytes for advanced energy storage systems.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Science
Published
2025-10-24
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202509905
Primary Topic
Supercapacitor Materials and Fabrication
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Cation–π Hydrogel Electrolyte for Flexible All‐Solid‐State Supercapacitors with Excellent Mechanical Deformation and Low‐Temperature Tolerance

Jinming Xue, Min Dang, Yuyuan Lu, Chenbei Wang et al.
Advanced Science
Supercapacitor Materials and Fabrication
article

Cation–π Hydrogel Electrolyte for Flexible All‐Solid‐State Supercapacitors with Excellent Mechanical Deformation and Low‐Temperature Tolerance

Jinming Xue, Min Dang, Yuyuan Lu, Chenbei Wang, Samuel M. Mugo, Qiang Zhang, Hongda Wang, Yizhou Zhao
article en

Abstract

Flexible supercapacitors are promising power sources for new-generation wearable electronics. However, their electrochemical performance often deteriorates under mechanical deformation and low-temperature environments. Here, a flexible supercapacitor is developed by sandwiching a hydrogel electrolyte between two electrodes. To address performance challenges, cation-π crosslinking sites are incorporated into the hydrogel network. These dynamic crosslinking sites act as efficient ion-hopping centers, imparting the hydrogel electrolyte with high fracture strength (1.8 MPa), strong ionic conductivity (3.9 S m<sup>-1</sup>), and excellent anti-freezing properties. Furthermore, the hydrogel forms cation-π interactions with carbon nanotube-based composite electrodes, facilitated by the reaction between the indole groups and Na<sup>+</sup> in the electrodes. This strong interfacial bonding minimizes electrode-electrolyte displacement during deformation, reducing interfacial resistance and enhancing charge transport efficiency. As a result, the cation-π hydrogel electrolyte enables the supercapacitor to achieve high energy storage, outstanding mechanical deformation tolerance, and robust performance at low temperatures. The device maintains 89.8% of its initial capacitance after 5000 bending cycles and retains 70.9% capacitance at -40 °C-significantly surpassing previously reported methods. This work presents an innovative strategy for designing high-performance hydrogel electrolytes for advanced energy storage systems.

Advanced ScienceVol. 13(3)
University of Science and Technology of China (CN), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry (CN), Jilin Province Science and Technology Department (CN), State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry (CN), MacEwan University (CA)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, People's Government of Jilin Province
Openalex Percentile: Top 79%
Supercapacitor Materials and Fabrication
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