Molten salt-mediated hierarchical porous carbon derived from biomass waste for high-performance capacitive storage

Abstract

Biomass-derived carbon (BDC) materials are the suitable precursors for the fabrication of carbon electrodes of supercapacitors because of the sustainability, environmental friendliness, power capability, and structural diversity. The fabrication of BDC with low cost and excellent electrochemical properties is important for the practical applications of BDC in energy storage fields. Herein, ambrosia melon peels are used as carbon precursors for the fabrication of sustainable BDC electrodes through the molten salt-mediated pyrolysis procedure. The ambrosia melon peels-derived porous carbon (AMPPC) possesses high specific surface area of 529.9 m2 g−1. The AMPPC electrode shows the charge storage behavior of electrical double-layer capacitance with high ionic conductivity, high specific capacitance (218.3 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1) and outstanding rate performance. In addition, the symmetric supercapacitor based on the AMPPC electrodes presents high specific energy density and specific power density (8 kW kg−1). It can be used as energy source to power helicopter model, clock, and calculator. Thus, the work gives an inspiration of design of BDC from the low-cost biomass waste and provides a simple way for the fabrication of BDC for the carbon electrodes of supercapacitors, lithium-ion batteries and so on.