A self-healing hydrogel electrolyte for flexible solid-state supercapacitors

Flexible electrochemical energy storage devices have great potential in wearable and portable electronic devices. However, their practical applications have been deferred by mechanical damages such as repeated stretching, bending and squeezing. Self-healing hydrogel electrolytes can automatically repair such physical damages and maintain good electric contact at electrode/electrolyte interface. Herein, we report a hydrogel electrolyte with excellent tensile properties and good conductivity under large strain/stress. A solid state supercapacitor was further demonstrated, showing a high energy density of 21.3 Wh kg-1 at a power density of 350 W kg-1. The as-fabricated supercapacitor possesses good stretchability, with a 68% of retention of its initial capacitance after 40 breaking/healing cycles. The excellent self-healing capability of the hydrogel electrolyte can be attributed to the presence of hydrogen bonds and molecular chain fluidity within its structural motif. Our work provides promising routes towards developing new self-healing solid-state electrolytes for next-generation electrochemical energy storage and conversion applications with good performance and high safety.