Professor Kim Gi-chul's Research Team at Mokwon University Develops High-Performance Secondary Battery Based on Maxine

Professor Kim Gi-chul of the Department of New Materials Chemical Engineering at Mokwon University and Ph.D. candidate Kim Mi-ri (from left) belonging to Professor Kim Gi-chul's 'Functional Materials Research Laboratory'. Provided by Mokwon University

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Domestic researchers have succeeded in developing a high-performance lithium-ion battery (hereinafter secondary battery) based on MXene.

Mokwon University announced on the 7th that Professor Kim Gi-chul's research team from the Department of New Materials Chemical Engineering at the university, in collaboration with the Hanmi Joint Research Center of the Nano Convergence Technology Institute and Chungnam National University, secured technology to improve the electric capacity performance and lifespan characteristics of MXene-based secondary batteries.

MXene is a compound combining transition metals with carbon or nitrogen and is considered a two-dimensional new material that facilitates smooth electrical flow.

The reason the research team focused on MXene to enhance secondary battery performance is precisely this. Based on this, the team mixed MXene with polymers and controlled the structure at the nanoscale (one-billionth of a meter) using an electrospinning method, producing hollow MXene-carbon nanofibers.

As a result, the hollow nanofibers increased lithium-ion accessibility and achieved an electric capacity of 306mAh/g, 1.5 times higher than the existing MXene-based lithium-ion battery capacity of 200mAh/g.

The team's achievement was published on the 3rd of last month in the prestigious international journal in the field of nanochemistry, ChemElectroChem, and was also selected as the cover paper on the 30th of the same month.

Cover of the international journal in the field of nanochemistry, ChemElectroChem. Provided by Mokwon University

The first authors of the paper are PhD candidate Kim Mi-ri from Mokwon University (belonging to Professor Kim Gi-chul’s ‘Functional Materials Research Lab’) and master’s candidate Seo Da-rae from Chungnam National University (Professor Koo Ja-seung’s lab), while the corresponding authors include Dr. Han Hee, Dr. Lee Yong-hee, and Dr. Ahn Chi-won from the Nano Convergence Technology Institute.

Meanwhile, PhD candidate Kim Mi-ri from Mokwon University, using the same electrospinning method, co-developed a ‘junction-free flexible transparent electrode’ as a joint first author with researcher Song Jin-gyu from the Nano Convergence Technology Institute. The research results were published online on the 18th of last month in the renowned international journal Nanotechnology.

Professor Kim Gi-chul of Mokwon University stated, “In the era of the 4th Industrial Revolution, various micro (one-millionth) electronic devices to implement Internet of Things services are expected to be developed. Given that high-capacity ultra-small secondary batteries are essential components for such micro electronic devices, the significance of this research outcome is also substantial.”