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A long-lasting concentration cell based on a magnetic electrolyte

Nature Nanotechnology volume 9, pages 901–906 (2014)Cite this article

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Abstract

A concentration cell1,2,3 is composed of two equivalent half-cells made of the same material but differing in the concentration of reactants. As these concentrations equilibrate, the increase in entropy is converted into a flow of electricity with the voltage output determined by the Nernst equation and proportional to the logarithm of the concentration ratios. However, as diffusion constantly strives to erase all concentration gradients4,5,6, concentration cells produce only moderate voltages (typically tens of millivolts at room temperature7,8) over relatively short times9 and, consequently, such devices have not been regarded as promising for energy storage10,11,12. Here, we report a concentration cell that produces significantly higher voltages (∼0.5 V) for over 100 h. The key to our design is that the citric acid molecules involved in the electrode reactions are tethered onto magnetic nanoparticles, and a sharp gradient (107–1011 anode/cathode concentration ratio) is maintained at one of the electrodes by a permanent magnet external to the cell. Our cell does not result in corrosion of the electrodes, produces no harmful by-products, and can be regenerated by recoating used nanoparticles with fresh citric acid. We show that a series of such centimetre-sized cells produces enough electricity to power small electronic devices (timers and calculators) for several tens of hours. Our results illustrate how redox-active molecules that are, in themselves, non-magnetic can be effectively concentrated by magnetic fields to produce electrical energy13,14,15.

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Figure 1: Concentration cell based on magnetic nanoparticles.
Figure 2: Effect of geometry on the performance characteristics of the concentration cell.
Figure 3: The key role of magnetic nanoparticles in the operation of the cell.
Figure 4: Mechanism underlying the operation of the concentration cell.
Figure 5: Magnetic-nanoparticle concentration cells power small electronic devices.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Non-Equilibrium Energy Research Center (NERC), which is an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences (award no. DE-SC0000989). J.V.I.T. was supported by a Walter Ahlström Foundation postdoctoral grant. The authors thank B. Kowalczyk and P. Pillai for discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, 60208, Illinois, USA

    Yong Yan, Jaakko V. I. Timonen & Bartosz A. Grzybowski

  2. Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, 60208, Illinois, USA

    Yong Yan, Jaakko V. I. Timonen & Bartosz A. Grzybowski

Authors
  1. Yong Yan
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  2. Jaakko V. I. Timonen
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Contributions

Y.Y. carried out most experiments and performed data analysis. J.V.I.T. synthesized and characterized the Fe3O4 nanoparticles and analysed the data. Y.Y., J.V.I.T. and B.A.G. wrote the manuscript. Y.Y. and B.A.G. conceived the project. B.A.G. supervised the research.

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Correspondence to Bartosz A. Grzybowski.

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Yan, Y., Timonen, J. & Grzybowski, B. A long-lasting concentration cell based on a magnetic electrolyte. Nature Nanotech 9, 901–906 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2014.198

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