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Saquib Ahmed, assistant professor of engineering technology and founding director of the Integrated Studies in Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Center, was awarded the Visiting Faculty position at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) under the Department of Energy (DOE) for a third summer in a row (2021, 2022, 2023). His research is a collaboration with Bogazici University (Turkey), Yale University, Stony Brook University (SBU) and BNL scientists.

The proposal is titled “An Integrated Approach towards Enhancing Supercapacitor Functionality.”

Abstract
Supercapacitors are high-capacity devices with lower voltage limits; these devices occupy the space between electrolytic capacitors and rechargeable batteries. Supercapacitors store 10 to 100 times more energy per unit volume or mass than electrolytic capacitors, can accept and deliver charge much faster than batteries, and tolerate many more charge and discharge cycles than rechargeable batteries. Despite these advantages, widespread adoption of supercapacitors has been restricted due to their limited energy density. Optimizing their energy storage performance is critical to promote supercapacitors’ competitive edge in energy storage applications. The proposed research will explore this limitation at its most fundamental level through computation, machine learning, and experiment. The energy storage performance of supercapacitors will be elucidated by exploring the effect of composition and solvation of applied electrolytes, specifically room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs), in conjunction with varying the micropore structure of electrodes. A family of electrochemically stable carbonaceous materials with large surface area will be utilized as electrodes.