A green approach for synthesis of an efficient nano pebbles-like BiVO4@C electrode for supercapacitor application

Abstract

A simple, sustainable, cost-effective, and environmentally benign BiVO4@C electrode is developed via an in-situ bio-mediated green SILAR approach. The optimized synthesis and electrochemical characterization of a BiVO4@C and BiVO4 electrode are reported. The in-situ incorporation of carbon in the BiVO4 (BiVO4@C) was determined by Raman, XPS, and FTIR spectroscopy. The BiVO4@C electrode demonstrates a large specific surface area (106.7 m2 g−1), higher charge storage, superior capacitive performance, longer discharge time, and excellent cycling stability when compared to BiVO4. The flexible solid-state symmetric supercapacitor (SSC) device using BiVO4@C electrode material with PVA/KOH electrolyte gel delivered maximum specific capacitance (Csp) (154.6 F g−1) and energy density of 42.0 Wh kg−1 at a power density of 571.6 W kg−1. Moreover, the symmetric device exhibited cycle stability of 5000 cycles with 97.4 % capacitance retention paving the way for developing sustainable supercapacitors for commercial application.