Carbon and Advanced Energy Materials

Electrochemistry of diamond and Nano carbon materials

Carbon is an extraordinary element because of its ability to covalently bond with different orbital hybridizations. This leads to a rich variety of molecular structures that constitute the field of organic chemistry. For millennia, there were only two known substances of pure carbon atoms: graphite and diamond. The discovery of nanometre dimensional C60, and related fullerene-structures (C70, C84), spawned the field of Nano carbon research. The next major advance in carbon research was the discovery of carbon nanotubes (CNTs).The traditional electrochemical applications for carbon in solid electrode structures for the chlor-alkali industry as well in aluminium refining are giving way to more diverse applications requiring high-surface-area carbon i.e., capacitor, fuel cells, metal/air batteries and high-energy lithium batteries. In these of these applications carbon has the desirable combination of acceptable electrical conductivity, chemical/electrochemical compatibility to the surrounding environment, and availability in the appropriate structure for fabrication into electrodes. In addition, the low cost of carbon relative to other electronic conductors is an important advantage for its widespread use in electrodes, particularly in electrochemical systems that must compete with existing technologies. Diamond electrodes are particularly attractive for electrochemistry Because of its extraordinary chemical stability; diamond is a perspective electrode material to be used in electrochemistry and electrochemical engineering.