Brief introduction of five kinds of new lithium ion capacitors and its comparison with lithium ion battery performance

Li ion capacitor has compatibility across lithium ion battery and double electrode layer capacitor. It performs well in wind power generation, streetlight battery and industrial equipment. As time goes by, there will be many kinds of Li ion capacitors. They may have specific advantages on a certain performance. And now, they have invented in laboratory.

The developers of quick charge capacitor of lithium ion battery: Japan TAIYO YUDEN. This kind of capacitor can finish fully charge in 30 seconds. The capacity of Li ion capacitor is lower than that of rechargeable battery. However, Li ion capacitor is applied in different kinds of toys and measuring instrument powers because of its feature of quick charge, and it can also use cooperatively with solar battery or electric generator as a storage battery.

The developers of high temperature resistance Li ion capacitor: Japan FDK. It uses activated carbon on anode and carbon for cathode. The maximum voltage is 3.8V, electrostatic capacity is 1000F, and energy density of unit weight is around 14Wh/kg. Its features are wonderful endurance and less self-discharge.

The developers of compounding Li-ion battery: Japan Graduate School of Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology. Use composite material of single-layer carbon nanotube and lithium titanate (Li4Ti5O12，LTO) as anode, and have large capacity and the high rate discharging performance. The energy density of single volume on electrode area is 45Wh/L, and output power density is 17000W/L. Compared with the capacitor with double electrode layer using activate carbon, this capacitor can upgrade about 3.8~ 4.5 times.

The developers of water system Li ion capacitor: Fudan University. This hybrid capacitor uses activate carbon on anode, spinel lithium manganese on cathode (now power Li ion battery use it as cathode material), and aqueous solution of LiMn2O4 as electrolyte. Its features are high specific energy, high power, long life-span, low cost and good safety performance.

The developers of miniaturization Li ion capacitor: Japan SHOEI. This company produces small size tubular Li ion capacitor for small devices and household application.

All in all, Japan plays a leading role in Li ion capacitor research. Different kinds of Li ion capacitor can have specific features on high rate charging & discharging, high/low temperature resistance, and large-scale/ small-scale, so as to adapt to different applications.