Simulation of the Electrochemical Response of Cobalt Hydroxide Electrodes for Energy Storage

Abstract

Cyclic Voltammetry is an analysis method for characterizing the behaviors of electrochem-ically active materials by measuring current through defined potential sweeps. The current–poten-tial relationship depends on key variables such concentration of electrolyte, electron-transfer rate, and the distance and time of species in relation to the electroactive surface of the material. A MATLAB® simulation was developed on a diffusion and kinetics basis, simulating the equations of Fick’s second law and Butler–Volmer, respectively, towards understanding the energy-storage mechanisms of cobalt hydroxide electrodes. The simulation was compared to a real cobalt hydrox-ide system, showing an accurate approximation to the experimentally obtained response and devi-ations possibly related to other physical/chemical processes influencing the involved species.