Waste tissue papers templated highly porous Mn3O4 hollow microtubes prepared via biomorphic method for pseudocapacitor applications

Abstract

The electrode materials with large surface area and high porosity are predominant to enable the energy storage properties of electrochemical supercapacitors. Herein, lab-waste tissue paper templated trimanganese tetroxide hollow microtubes (Mn3O4 HMTs) with high porosity on their walls were synthesized via a facile biomorphic method. Initially, aqueous manganese precursor was impregnated onto the surface of cellulose fibers by means of evaporation of water molecules. After thermal treatment under ambient atmosphere, the cellulose fibers were removed, which led to the formation of Mn3O4 HMTs. The morphology, crystallinity and surface area of the prepared Mn3O4 HMTs were examined by FE-SEM, XRD and BET analyses. When tested in aqueous alkaline electrolyte, the as-prepared Mn3O4 HMTs delivered a maximum specific capacitance of 51.7 F g−1 at the current density of 1 mA cm−2 with good rate capability of 64.6% at high current density of 10 mA cm−2, which is due to the high porosity that enables an effective penetration of electrolyte ions. After 2000 cycles, the porous Mn3O4 HMTs demonstrated good cycling stability of 57.1% at a current density of 5 mA cm−2. This facile method for the preparation of hollow structured materials could provide a deep insight into novel pseudocapacitive materials.