Abstract
MnO2 nanorod/carbon cloth (MnO2/CC) composites were prepared through in situ redox deposition as freestanding electrodes for flexible supercapacitors. The CC substrates possessing porous and interconnecting structures enable the uniform decoration of MnO2 nanorods on each fiber, thus forming conformal coaxial micro/nanocomposites. Three-dimensional CC can provide considerable specific surface area for high mass loading of MnO2, and the direct deposition process without using polymeric binders enables reliable electrical connection of MnO2 with CC. The effect of MnO2 decoration on the electrochemical performances was further investigated, indicating that the electrode prepared with 40 min deposition time shows high specific capacitance (220 F/g at a scan rate of 5 mV/s) and good cycling property (90% of the initial specific capacitance was maintained after 2500 cycles) in 1 M Na2SO4 aqueous solution. This enhanced electrochemical performance is ascribed to the synergistic effect of good conductivity of carbon substrates as well as outstanding pseudocapacitance of MnO2 nanorods. The obtained MnO2/CC compositing electrode with the advantages of low cost and easy fabrication is promising in applications of flexible supercapacitors.
Highlights
Manganese oxide, as one of the most promising electrode materials for supercapacitors, has attracted significant attention with its excellent electrochemical properties such as high theoretical pseudocapacitance (∼1370 F/g), low cost, and environmental friendliness [1, 2]
When the mass loading of MnO2 on the electrode is high, densely packed MnO2 enormously reduce the available surface area participating in the electrochemical process and increase the difficulty for electrolyte penetrating into the bulk MnO2 and raise the contact resistance of the electrode [5,6,7]
Typical SEM images of the MnO2 nanorod/carbon cloth (MnO2/carbon cloths (CCs)) with different depositing time are shown in Figure 1, which clearly demonstrate that the well-established nano-MnO2 has been grown on CC
Summary
As one of the most promising electrode materials for supercapacitors, has attracted significant attention with its excellent electrochemical properties such as high theoretical pseudocapacitance (∼1370 F/g), low cost, and environmental friendliness [1, 2]. When the mass loading of MnO2 on the electrode is high (which is essential for obtaining high energy density), densely packed MnO2 enormously reduce the available surface area participating in the electrochemical process and increase the difficulty for electrolyte penetrating into the bulk MnO2 and raise the contact resistance of the electrode [5,6,7]. All these phenomena remarkably limit kinetics of charge transfer reaction and hinder the improvement of specific capacitance. The one-step synthesized MnO2/CC electrodes with the advantages of low cost and being scalable exhibit considerable electrochemical properties with high specific capacitance and good cycling property, indicating their broad applications in flexible energy storage device
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