GB2502904A

GB2502904A - Hexagonal Shaped Capacitor

Info

Publication number: GB2502904A
Application number: GB1313353.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Alan Edgar
Original assignee: GRAPHENEX UK Ltd
Current assignee: GRAPHENEX UK LIMITED
Priority date: 2013-07-26
Filing date: 2013-07-26
Publication date: 2013-12-11
Also published as: GB201313353D0

Abstract

A capacitor comprising: an outer casing which is in the form of a hollow hexagonal prism, where the interior faces of the prism form part of the capacitor. The capacitor end caps may be threaded inserts which contain removable conductive links. The capacitor may be provided a part of an array of several capacitors arranged in a honeycomb structure, where the array may be provided with a cooling system where air flows between adjacent capacitors. The present invention allows for more efficient spacing of capacitors in an array.

Description

HEXAGONAL SUPERCAPACITOR

BACKGROUND

This invention relates to a practical alternative to chemical batteries, in particular one or more Supercapacitors are formed into a hexagonal form or shape in order to maximise capacitance values [Farads] within a minimum space thereby creating an efficient means of storing very large amounts of electrical energy, the said Supercapacitors can be electrically interconnected to each other for a further reduction in space by way of threaded inserts and threaded conductive links.

Conventional electro-chemical batteries are inherently heavy and when subjected low temperatures are particularly inefficient, furthermore if they are subjected to overcharging they can produce hazardous gasses which in certain conditions can cause explosions, within a short time of use the output capacity of these electro chemical batteries begin to chemically deteriorate to the point where they will inevitably fail to retain any useful electrical energy, subsequently the exhausted battery then creates serious environmental issues as it becomes difficult and costly to recycle due to the toxic nature of the materials used in manufacture.

STATEMENT OF INVENTION

To overcome these technical and environmental issues the present invention proposes to rely upon maximising all of the internal surface areas of the device which includes all of the internal faces of the hexagonal case as well as the internal faces of the insulated end caps with one or more Nano composite materials, electrically conducting binders arranged in one or more configurations and a dielectric or dielectrics within the case of Hexagonal Supercapacitors to provide a practical, safe and efficient method of storing large amounts of electrical energy the likes of which would be comparable with the stored energy of a conventional chemical battery, the invention would also provide a large energy storing device or devices when connected together which can be charged and discharged in excess of 500,000 times without any deterioration in performance, the performance of the device is further enhanced by incorporating a carefully controlled zigzag cooling system which maintains an optimum temperature of the Hexagonal Supercapacitors in order to maximise its large storage capacity.

ADVANTAGES

The proposed Hexagonal Supercapacitors have the advantage of being much lighter than its equivalent chemical battery therefore it would provide significant weight savings in vehicles such as commercial vehicles, aircraft, locomotives, marine vessels, passenger road vehicles, golf buggies and powered wheelchairs / scooters, a further advantage of this invention is the recharging time of the Supercapacitors which takes minutes rather than hours as in conventional chemical batteries, since this invention has an hexagonal profile / footprint in addition to a vertical stacking and interconnection system it requires less storage space than conventional cylindrical capacitors thus it is particularly suited for the development of the all-electric passenger vehicle the likes of which would also benefit from its operational range capabilities without suffering any reduction in performance over long periods of time, furthermore this invention can effectively operate within a wide range of temperatures and humidity levels due to the shape and profile of the Hexagonal Supercapacitor when a zigzag cooling path is created between and along the hexagonal walls of the Supercapacitor thus exploiting a thermally efficient means of controlling the optimum temperature of the Supercapacitor in order to maximise the storage capacity which in contrast to cylindrical capacitors could not perform this function, furthermore the device requires no maintenance and also benefits from simple charging circuits, in addition the device is not subject to "memory effect" the likes of which permanently limits the storage capacity of conventional chemical batteries.

APPLICATIONS

This invention would provide the means of storing large amounts of electrical energy from a number of renewable energy sources these include; wind, solar and tidal energy sources; furthermore the invention would provide a means of powering many types of vehicles, electronic equipment such as computers and cell phones in addition to electric power tools.

DRAWINGS

An example of the invention will now be described by referring to the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 shows a single Hexagonal Supercapacitor Figure 2 shows a 2 layer stack of 6 Supercapacitors Figure 3 shows a single layer of 7 Supercapacitors Figure 4 shows a vented single layer of 7 Supercapacitors

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A single Hexagonal Supercapacitor as shown in Fig 1 consists of a rigid hexagonal outer case (1) this being manufactured from a thin thermally efficient material, in addition the outer case would also display the capacitance value and working voltage of the Supercapacitor, the outer case is capped and sealed with insulated end caps (2) these also provide an extra surface area for Nano composite materials and electrically conducting binders to add further capacity to the device. Electrical cables are connected to the device by way of threaded inserts at either end of the device which then facilitates quick assembly and disassembly (3) however if the Hexagonal Supercapacitors are to be connected vertically or in series with each other then quick release inserts (4) are used together with a threaded conductive link, this then eliminates voltage drops and the need for soldering which would be necessary if conventional connecting methods were used, the outer case is clearly marked with the polarity of the device, a red band (5) indicates the positive terminal and a black band (6) indicates the negative terminal. Fig 2 (7) shows 6 Supercapacitors stacked vertically. Fig 4 (8) shows the zigzag cooling channels around 7 Supercapacitors.

Internally the device would rely upon a variety and combinations of Nano composite materials together with a variety and combinations of electrically conducting binders in addition to a dielectric or dielectrics the likes of which would produce surface areas of approximately 1000 square meters per gram of Nano composite material, this in turn would then produce very high capacitance and energy storage values IFarads]. With safety and reliability in mind this invention is protected by an integral over voltage and over temperature monitoring circuit which is contained within the case.

Since the above materials are recyclable and / or biodegradable they would not create any safety or environmental issues during the manufacturing and disposal processes.

Claims

CLAIMS1. The present invention proposes to rely upon maximizing all of the internal surface areas of the device which includes all of the internal faces of the hexagonal case as well as the internal faces of the insulated end caps with a combination of one or more Nano composite materials, electrically conducting binders arranged in one or more configurations and a dielectric or dielectrics within the case of Hexagonal Supercapacitors to provide a practical, safe and efficient method of storing large amounts of electrical energy the likes of which would be comparable with the stored energy of a conventional chemical battery, the invention would also provide a large energy storing device or devices when connected together which can be charged and discharged in excess of 500,000 times without any deterioration in performance, the performance of the device is further enhanced by incorporating a carefully controlled zigzag cooling system which maintains an optimum temperature of the Hexagonal Supercapacitors in order to maximise its large storage capacity.
2. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claim 1 in which internal Nano composite materials, electrically conducting binders and a dielectric or dielectrics would be housed within a hexagonal case and arranged in such a way as to maximise the surface area of all of the internal surface areas of the invention which includes the inner surfaces of the end caps thereby producing Hexagonal Supercapacitors which are both very light and compact and also possess very high capacitance and energy storage values without the need for any maintenance.
3. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims land 2 in which an integral over voltage and over temperature protection circuit would be housed within the aforementioned hexagonal case in order to protect the invention from over voltage and I or over temperature conditions whilst supplying energy and during recharging with simple charging devices.
4. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims I to 3 whereby each end of the hexagonal case has an insulated end cap attached to it and within the said end caps are threaded inserts together with removable conductive links, the end caps also provide the means of maximising the surface area of the Nano composite materials, electrically conducting binders and a dielectric or dielectrics with respect to providing greater surface areas.
5. A Supercapacitor as claimed in claim 1 to 4 wherein the arrangement is coaxiaL
6. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims 1 to 5 whereby the invention would have the means of storing and retaining very large amounts of electrical energy within a very small space and within a very short period of time, the invention would also have the means and capacity to release the same stored energy within a wide range of high and low temperature and at any rate whether it being a fixed or variable load or loads without encountering "memory effect" restrictions with respect to multiple charging or recharging cycles.
7. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims I to 6 where the invention provides a compact, efficient and fast method of interconnecting one or more Supercapacitors to each other and in so doing subsequently reduces the storage space of the said Supercapacitors, the invention also eliminates any voltage drops between any of the Supercapacitors which are connected in this way.
8. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims 1 to 7 whereby the invention is temperature controlled by way of a zigzag cooling system, in particular low volume cooling air is blown through the thermally efficient channels which are the thin walls of the Hexagonal Supercapacitors, this ensures the Supercapacitors operates at optimum temperatures in order to maximise the storage capacity of the Supercapacitor or Supercapacitors.
9. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor according to claims 1 to 8 which at the end of its extended life, this being in the order of 10-12 years continuous use all of the materials and components used in this invention can be economically and easily recycled or are entirely biodegradable.
10. A Hexagonal Supercapacitor made by a method or methods as claim in any one of claims 1-9
11. A method of making and assembling one or more Supercapacitors and connectors as shown in the accompanying drawings which are identified as Fig I, Fig 2, Fig 3, and Fig 4.