Abstract
Carbon materials have gained considerable attention in recent years due to their superior properties. Activated carbon has been used in supercapacitors due to its density and rapid adsorption capability. The sp2–sp3 hybrid porous carbon materials are synthesized using herringbone-type carbon nanofibers (CNFs) and carbonized spherical phenol resins, with KOH as the activating agent. The morphology of the hybrid porous carbon facilitates the formation of ribbon-like nanosheets from highly activated CNFs wrapped around spherical resin-based activated carbon. The etching and separation of the CNFs produce a thin ribbon-like nanosheet structure; these CNFs simultaneously form new bonds with activated carbon, forming the sp2–sp3 hybrid porous structure. The relatively poor electrical conductivity of amorphous carbon is improved by the 3D conductive network that interconnects the CNF and amorphous carbon without requiring additional conductive material. The composite electrode has high electron conductivity and a large surface area with a specific capacitance of 120 F g−1. Thus, the strategy substantially simplifies the hybrid materials of sp2-hybridized CNFs and sp3-hybridized amorphous spherical carbon and significantly improves the comprehensive electrochemical performance of supercapacitors. The developed synthesis strategy provides important insights into the design and fabrication of carbon nanostructures that can be potentially applied as electrode materials for supercapacitors.
Highlights
Over the past few decades, carbon materials have gained widespread attention in the field of energy storage due to the high chemical stability of their C–C covalent bonds, high diversity in terms of crystallinity, morphology, porosity, and texture, as well as the ease of utilization of these characteristics to meet specific application requirements [1,2,3]
The samples were dried at 150 ◦ C for 12 h to obtain hybrid porous carbon (HPC) denoted as HPC-1/2, HPC-1/6, and HPC-1/10, where the numbers represent the carbon:KOH weight ratio required for activation
The microstructure changes of the composite material after the activation process were analyzed according to the KOH content using field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM)
Summary
Over the past few decades, carbon materials have gained widespread attention in the field of energy storage due to the high chemical stability of their C–C covalent bonds, high diversity in terms of crystallinity, morphology, porosity, and texture, as well as the ease of utilization of these characteristics to meet specific application requirements [1,2,3]. Among the various types of carbon materials, activated carbon has been analyzed extensively for application in supercapacitors owing to its density and rapid adsorption capability [4,5]. Activated carbon exhibits wide pore distribution and contains micropores and macropores, along with random pore connections [6]. Micropores are not accessible to the electrolyte ions because they are closed or the passages between them are narrow, completely preventing or drastically decelerating the ion transport [7]. The intrinsically irregular pores of activated carbon limit its accessibility to electrolyte ions during the charge/discharge process in case of organic ions in non-aqueous systems. New materials are required to overcome the drawbacks of activated carbon electrode materials and to improve the performance of supercapacitors [8]
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