Probing the influence of mixed alkaline electrolytes towards the fabrication of melamine-derived porous Co3O4-based supercapacitor

Abstract

The electrochemical performance of Co3O4 and Melamine-assisted Co3O4 (Co3O4-M) in different electrolytes such as KOH, NaOH, and their mixture (KOH + NaOH), was investigated with a focus on the specific capacitance using various physico-chemical techniques. By systematically comparing the stability and performance of Co3O4 in various electrolytes, a striking improvement in specific capacitance in the 4M (KOH + NaOH) electrolyte mixture was observed. The pristine Co3O4 exhibited the specific capacitance of 240 Fg-1 at 1 Ag-1 in 4 M KOH and Co3O4-M exhibited higher capacitance of 340 Fg-1 at 1 Ag-1 in the mixed alkaline electrolytes with a retention of 99% after 5000 cycles. Our research shows mechanistic insights into the underlying reasons for the improved specific capacitance and highlights the potential for optimizing Co3O4-M-based supercapacitors by carefully selecting and combining electrolytes. These findings contribute to the fundamental understanding of Co3O4-M -based energy storage systems and offer new avenues for the development of supercapacitors with excellent performance.