Published online by Cambridge University Press: 19 February 2019
In energy storage systems, every component that makes up an electrode can greatly affect the electrochemical performance. One example includes the so-called “binders” used in secondary batteries. Herein, we compare the influence of using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) or sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) on the electrochemical performance of an aluminium chloride battery (ACB) system. The active material of the cathode was a reduced graphene oxide dried under supercritical conditions (RGOCPD). Interestingly, while PVDF enabled one of the highest capacities reported for ACBs, the CMC resulted in a significant degradation of the cell’s performance.