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Tungsten Oxide for Proton Batteries and Its Storage Mechanism

Wednesday, 16 May 2018
Ballroom 6ABC (Washington State Convention Center)
H. Jiang, J. Hong, X. Wu, and X. Ji (Oregon State University)
The proton insertion capability of a new composite, tungsten oxide hydrate, WO3•0.6H2O, synthesized in a simple hydrothermal method is demonstrated as an anode material for rechargeable proton batteries using sulfuric acid as the electrolyte. Using Ag/AgCl and active carbon as the reference electrode and counter electrode respectively, the electrochemical performance of WO3•0.6H2O was carried out by using a three electrode cell. The cell shows a reversible proton insertion/extraction reaction with a charge capacity of 90 mAh/g at a rate of 1C, with an average discharge voltage at -0.25 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). The cycling performance tested at 20C, the charge capacity is still stable at 80 mAh/g after 10,000 cycles. XRD rietveld refinement indicates that WO3•0.6H2O is a channel hexagonal structure and the zeolitic waters are located in the center of the interstitial cavities. Ex-situ XRD studies also confirms that the protons are inserted through the bridge oxygen which causes the expansion of the ab plane and shrinkage in the c direction. Pairing it with Prussian blue (Fe/Fe), a 1.5V full proton cell was made and showed a capacity around 50mAh/g (based on the anode) at current rate of 2Ag-1. These results demonstrate that WO3•0.6H2O is a promising anode material to be utilized for proton batteries.