A study of 3D-printed carbon electrodes for the manufacture of electric double-layer capacitors

Screen printing, inkjet printing, doctor blade coating and dip coating are among the most common methods that have been developed and researched for the manufacture of supercapacitors. A more recent method to emerge in this field is 3D printing. This research investigates the most effective concentration of carbon conductive paint (CCP) for 3D printing electrodes and current collectors for small cuboidal electric double layer capacitors (EDLCs). The precise CCP used for experiments was Bare Conductive Electric Paint. CCP is designed to create custom conductive surfaces and is compatible with 3D printing. Two different 3D printing techniques were combined to produce EDLC samples. Several 1.0 mm thick EDLC samples were produced with varying concentrations of CCP to compare electrical performance and printing feasibility. Electrical performance and printability was found to be impacted by the carbon concentration of the CCP. Lower carbon concentrations limited the conductivity of the components printed, while higher concentrations were too viscous to be printed. A ratio of 0.3:3.0 parts CCP to distilled water (specifically 3.0 g CCP and 3 g distilled water) was found to optimize electrical performance of samples that could feasibly be 3D-printed.