Necklace-like C-ZIF-8@MWCNTs fabricated by electrochemical deposition towards enhanced supercapacitor

Abstract

Electrochemical deposition is a facile technique to fabricate metal organic frameworks (MOFs) based materials in a short reaction time under mild conditions. In this work, novel necklace-like zeolitic imidazole framework@multiwalled carbon nanotubes (ZIF-8@MWCNTs) composite was synthesized by electrochemical method for the first time and then used as precursor for subsequent carbonization and acid treatment. The resultant porous carbon material (C-ZIF-8@MWCNTs) maintained the necklace-like structure with a high surface area of 1063.2 m2 g−1. When used as electrode material for supercapacitor, the C-ZIF-8@MWCNTs demonstrated a high specific capacitance of 259.2 F g−1 at the current density of 0.5 A g−1. Further, the capacitance retention could reach 92% after 5000 cycles under the current density of 15 A g−1. Due to the large specific surface area of the porous carbon derived from ZIF-8 and the intrinsic high conductivity, the C-ZIF-8@MWCNTs displayed good rate ability and cycle performance. The current work can expand the method to synthesize functional MOFs-based materials for advanced applications.