Aqueous supercapacitors on conductive cotton

Abstract

Wearable electronics offer the combined advantages of both electronics and fabrics. In this article, we report the fabrication of wearable supercapacitors using cotton fabric as an essential component. Carbon nanotubes are conformally coated onto the cotton fibers, leading to a highly electrically conductive interconnecting network. The porous carbon nanotube coating functions as both active material and current collector in the supercapacitor. Aqueous lithium sulfate is used as the electrolyte in the devices, because it presents no safety concerns for human use. The supercapacitor shows high specific capacitance (˜70–80 F·g−1 at 0.1 A·g−1) and cycling stability (negligible decay after 35,000 cycles). The extremely simple design and fabrication process make it applicable for providing power in practical electronic devices.