Plasma cell could create new possibilities in battery design

It is claimed the technology may open new pathways for battery and fuel-cell design and manufacturing, making hydrogen fuel and synthesising nanomaterials and polymers.

‘Plasmas formed at ambient conditions are normally sparks that are uncontrolled, unstable and destructive,’ said Mohan Sankaran, a chemical engineering professor and senior author of the paper. ‘We’ve developed a plasma source that is stable at atmospheric pressure and room temperature, which allows us to study and control the transfer of electrons across the interface of a plasma and an electrolyte solution.’

Sankaran worked with former students Carolyn Richmonds and Brandon Bartling; current students Megan Witzke and Seung Whan Lee; and fellow chemical engineering professors Jesse Wainright and Chung-Chiun Liu.

According to a statement, the group used a traditional set-up with its non-traditional electrode. They filled an electrochemical cell — essentially two glass jars joined with a glass tube — with an electrolyte solution of potassium ferricyanide and potassium chloride.