Biomass derived activated carbon by chemical surface modification as a source of clean energy for supercapacitor application

Abstract

The main aim of this research work is to make activated carbon (AC) materials based on biochar obtained from date seeds via pyrolysis and activated with H2SO4. The study aimed to assess the potential of these biochar-based materials for energy storage in supercapacitor by investigating the impact of different activation temperatures on their electrochemical performance in an alkaline electrolyte. The focus was on identifying the most efficient material. Results from Raman Spectroscopy and XRD analysis revealed that sample DSAC-700 exhibited more ordered domains and suitable storage sites compared to the other biochar-based materials. Measured value of the ratio of intensity of D & G band (ID/IG) for DSBC-600, DSAC-700, DSAC-800, and DSAC-900 were 1.13, 0.83, 1.06, and 1.04, respectively. The lowest value of (ID/IG) for DSAC-700 indicated a higher ordered graphitic plane, resulting improved conductivity and diffusion of ions within the aligned graphitic domains, which positively impacted the electrochemical performance. Samples DSAC-700 showed 487.5 F/g specific capacitance at 1 A/g current density. Galvanic charge and discharge trends also showed that DSAC-700 had higher charge storage ability with less discharge. The biochar-based materials (BC and ACs) derived from DS showed promise as materials for energy storage applications, and they represent a step towards clean energy.