Interweaving Activated Carbon with Multi-dimensional Carbon Nanomaterials for High-performance Supercapacitors

Abstract

It has been an important task to improve the properties of conventional activated carbon electrodes to enhance the performances of commercial supercapacitors. Herein, we incorporate multi-dimensional carbon nanomaterials (zero-dimensional carbon black, one-dimensional carbon nanofiber, and two-dimensional graphene) to interweave commercial activated carbon to develop new nanocomposite electrodes for high-performance supercapacitors. Combining the synergistic effects from these multiple components, the resultant nanocomposite electrodes possess a well-packed three-dimensional electrical conduction network and a hierarchical porous structure, thus exhibiting enhanced packing and superior capacitive performances (especially power performances) and cycle life over current supercapacitor technology. The commercial availability of the materials we use indicates the feasibility of our nanocompositing approach in fabricating high-performance supercapacitors with low cost. Furthermore, this approach may be extended to develop superior nanocomposite electrodes for other energy-related devices, such as batteries, fuel cells, and solar cells.