An Investigative Study on Mixed Waste Feedstock-Derived Biochar as Active Electrode Material for Supercapacitor Applications

Sudhakar Pabba, Rajkamal Balu, Arun Krishna Vuppaladadiyam (), Ganesh Veluswamy, Manoj Kumar Jena, Ibrahim Gbolahan Hakeem, Namita Roy Choudhury, Abhishek Sharma, Michael Thomas, Aravind Surapaneni, Savankumar Patel () and Kalpit Shah
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Sudhakar Pabba: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Rajkamal Balu: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Arun Krishna Vuppaladadiyam: School of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6102, Australia
Ganesh Veluswamy: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Manoj Kumar Jena: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Ibrahim Gbolahan Hakeem: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Namita Roy Choudhury: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Abhishek Sharma: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Michael Thomas: Barwon Water, Geelong, VIC 3220, Australia
Aravind Surapaneni: South East Water, 101 Wells Street, Frankston, VIC 3199, Australia
Savankumar Patel: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
Kalpit Shah: Chemical and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, STEM College, RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 7, 1-19

Abstract: This work demonstrates the feasibility of using biochars derived from a variety of waste feedstocks, such as food organics and garden organics (FOGOs), garden organics (GOs), and biosolids (BSs), provided by Barwon Water (BW) and South East Water (SEW), as active electrode material for supercapacitor application. Four different biochars were produced by the co-pyrolysis of pre-treated mixed waste feedstocks, which were fabricated into a two-electrode symmetric supercapacitor set-up to evaluate their energy storage potential. Two different approaches, (i) carbon nanoparticle coating/modification and (ii) thermochemical activation, were employed to improve the electrochemical properties of the biochars. Potassium hydroxide-activated biochar derived from BW’s triple waste feedstock mixture (comprising 70% GOs, 20% FOGOs, and 10% BSs) demonstrated the highest specific capacitance (30.33 F/g at 0.1 A/g), energy density (4.21 Wh/kg), and power density (2.15 kW/kg) among the tested samples. Such waste-derived biochar offers several benefits for energy storage, including cost-efficiency and sustainable alternatives to traditional electrode materials. The biochar’s electrochemical performance can be further improved by improving the feedstock quality by different pre-treatments.

Keywords: organic waste; biosolids; co-pyrolysis; biochar; active electrode; supercapacitor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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