Nano zirconium oxide/carbon black as a new electrode material for electrochemical double layer capacitors

Abstract

In this paper, nano ZrO2/carbon black was evaluated as a possible electrode candidate material for electrochemical capacitors. Mechanical pressing as a fast and easy method was used for electrode fabrication. Regarding the utility in supercapacitors, the electrochemical properties of the produced nanocomposite was studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests in 2M KCl, KOH and NaNO3 electrolytes. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to characterize the microstructure and nature of the nanocomposite produced. The results obtained show that the 30:60:10 (carbon black:ZrO2:polytetrafluoroethylene) type electrode has a specific capacitance as high as 43.20Fg−1, in the potential range of −0.15 to 0.55V (vs. SCE) in 2M KCl at scan rate of 10mVs−1. SEM images confirm the porous structure of ZrO2/carbon black nanocomposite electrode. Also, charge/discharge cycling test shows a good reversibility and confirms that the electrical resistance would increase after 100 cycles.