Researchers from the University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory recently developed a graphene-enabled 3D printing platform that addresses a fundamental limitation in electrochemical energy storage: the tradeoff between electrode thickness and transport efficiency.
While thicker electrodes increase energy density by incorporating more active material, they typically suffer from poor ion transport and high resistance. To overcome this, the team designed interpenetrating 3D electrode architectures using an acrylate-based resin infused with graphene oxide (GO). The inclusion of GO enables the fabrication of highly porous, conductive structures that support both efficient ion diffusion and electron transport throughout ultra-thick electrodes.
Using multi-material microstereolithography (PµSL), the researchers printed electrodes up to 4 mm thick (within a 5.8 mm device), forming interdigitated structures that interlock to maximize surface area and minimize transport limitations. A porous graphene oxide scaffold was first printed to facilitate ion movement, followed by deposition of a gold layer to enhance electronic conductivity.
This graphene-based structural platform is combined with computational optimization, allowing both electrodes to be designed simultaneously for optimal performance. As Giovanna Bucci, a co-author and staff researcher in the Computational Engineering Division (CED) at LLNL, noted: "In conventional slab-like designs, a lot of the battery material becomes underutilized because ions cannot reach deep regions efficiently, creating dead zones and concentrated resistive losses near interfaces." The optimized geometries eliminate these dead zones by creating continuous ion-accessible pathways within the graphene-enabled network.
The resulting supercapacitors demonstrated strong performance, achieving an energy density of 4.7 Wh L−1 at a power density of 1689.0 W L−1, along with improved capacitance, reduced resistance, and stable cycling over more than 7,500 charge/discharge cycles. Compared to conventional and other 3D-printed carbon-based designs, the graphene oxide-based architecture enables more effective utilization of thick electrodes.
Beyond performance gains, the work highlights the role of graphene-based materials as enablers of advanced electrode architectures. By combining GO-enabled printability with optimized 3D design, the platform opens a pathway toward next-generation energy storage devices where structure and material are co-engineered for maximum efficiency.
