Nanostructured material for advanced energy storage : magnesium battery cathode development.

Magnesium batteries are alternatives to the use of lithium ion and nickel metal hydride secondary batteries due to magnesium's abundance, safety of operation, and lower toxicity of disposal. The divalency of the magnesium ion and its chemistry poses some difficulties for its general and industrial use. This work developed a continuous and fibrous nanoscale network of the cathode material through the use of electrospinning with the goal of enhancing performance and reactivity of the battery. The system was characterized and preliminary tests were performed on the constructed battery cells. We were successful in building and testing a series of electrochemical systems that demonstrated good cyclability maintaining 60-70% of discharge capacity after more than 50 charge-discharge cycles