Hierarchical Composite Materials Research Articles

Computational modeling of cracking in cortical bone microstructure using the mesh fragmentation technique

The cortical bone is a hierarchical composite material that, at the microscale, is segmented in an interstitial matrix, cement line, osteons, and Haversian canals. The cracking of the structure at this scale directly influences the macro behavior, and, in this context, the cement line has a protagonist role. In this sense, this work aims to simulate the crack initiation and propagation processes via cortical bone microstructure modeling with a two-dimensional mesh fragmentation technique that captures the mechanical relevance of its constituents. In this approach, high aspect ratio elements are inserted between the regular constant strain triangle finite elements to define potential crack paths a priori. The crack behavior is described using a composed damage model with two scalar damage variables, which is integrated by an implicit-explicit (Impl-Ex) scheme to avoid convergence problems usually found in numerical simulations involving multiple cracks. The approach’s capability of modeling the failure process in cortical bone microstructure is investigated by simulating four conceptual problems and one example based on a digital image of an experimental test. The results obtained in terms of crack pattern and failure mechanisms agree with those described in the literature, demonstrating that the numerical tool is promising to simulate the complex failure mechanisms in cortical bone, considering the properties of its distinct phases.

Void space expanded hierarchical battery-type composite material for high-capacity hybrid supercapacitors

Synergetic modulation of battery-type materials with excellent electrochemical activity is an important feature to elevate the energy storage performance in the hybrid supercapacitors (HySCs). In this study, we synthesized a void space expanded nickel sulfide@nickel molybdenum oxysulfide on Ni foam (NixSy@NiMoOx-1Sy/Ni foam) using wet-chemical sulfurization technique. The growth solution, composed of sulfur ions, partially converts NiMo DHs into NiMoOx-1Sy and the Ni foam substrate into NixSy, resulting in the formation of a hybrid-composite. Increased mass-loading growth of NixSy@NiMoOx-1Sy/Ni foam and multi-oxidation states of nickel species in the composite were confirmed using the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The binder-free NixSy@NiMoOx-1Sy/Ni foam electrode was electrochemically cycled in aqueous KOH electrolyte, demonstrating battery-type redox behavior with enhanced capacity (310.6 mAh/g) compared to the NixSy/Ni foam (221.1 mAh/g) and NiMo DHs/Ni foam (142.5 mAh/g) electrodes, which could be ascribed to the improved electrical conductivity, adequate electrolyte diffusivity, and fast charge transfer properties. Furthermore, a two-electrode system based HySC was assembled using the battery-type NixSy@NiMoOx-1Sy/Ni foam and capacitive-type activated carbon, enabling a maximum energy density (58.8 Wh/kg) and power density (2666.7 W/kg) with good cycling stability and coulombic efficiency. The high-performance HySCs were used to power-up portable lighting devices, demonstrating their practical use in real-time applications.

Ultralight 3D cross-linked reinforced graphene@Fe3O4 composite aerogels for electromagnetic wave absorption

Graphene aerogels with three-dimensional (3D) hierarchical porous structures have attracted considerable attention as absorptive materials. Here, an enhanced 3D graphene oxide/carbon nanotube/epoxy resin aerogel (GCEA) was used as a template to successfully deposit Fe3O4 nanoparticles on the pore walls through in-situ chemical precipitation, resulting in a 3D composite aerogel absorber (rGCEA@Fe3O4) with both dielectric and magnetic loss properties. The rGCEA@Fe3O4 possesses excellent structural stability, conductive network, and evenly distributed magnetic particles. The rGCEA@Fe3O4 showed excellent electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance, with the minimum reflection loss (RL) reaching -58.13 dB at a frequency of 12.08 GHz and a thickness of 2.5 mm. The effective bandwidth was maximized at 6.64 GHz when the thickness was 2.2 mm. The aerogel prepared in this study can be directly used as encapsulation and absorptive materials for precision instruments. This work provides a new approach for the development of 3D hierarchical absorptive composite materials.

An approach to investigate the crystallographic unit cell of human tooth enamel.

Human tooth enamel (HTE) is the hardest tissue in the human body and its structural organization shows a hierarchical composite material. At the nanometric level, HTE is composed of approximately 97% hydroxyapatite [HAP, Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2] as inorganic phase, and of 3% as organic phase and water. However, it is still controversial whether the hexagonal HAP phase crystallizes in P63/m or another space group. The observance in HTE of Ca2+, Mg2+ and Na+ ions using X-ray characteristic energy-dispersive spectroscopy in the scanning electron microscope has been explained by substitutions in the HAP unit cell. Thus, Ca2+ can be replaced by Na+ and Mg2+ ions; the PO43- group can be replaced by CO32- ions; and the OH- ions can also be replaced by CO32-. A unit-cell model of the hexagonal structure of HTE is not fully defined yet. In this work, density functional theory calculations are performed to study the hexagonal HAP unit cell when substitution by OH-, CO32-, Mg2+ and Na+ ions are carried out. An approach is presented to study the crystallographic unit cell of HTE by examining the changes resulting from the inclusion of these different ions in the unit cell of HAP. Enthalpies of formation and crystallographic characteristics of the electron diffraction patterns are analysed in each case. The results show an enhancement in structural stability of HAP with OH defects, atomic substitution of Mg2+, carbonate and interstitial Na+. Simulated electron diffraction patterns of the generated structures show similar characteristics to those of human tooth enamel. Hence, the results explain the indiscernible structural changes shown in experimental X-ray diffractograms and electron diffraction patterns.

Development of hierarchical MOF-based composite phase change materials with enhanced latent heat storage for low-temperature battery thermal optimization

Most of the composite phase change materials (PCMs) based on metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have much lower latent heat than pure PCMs due to nanoconfined effects, which limits their application in the field of battery insulation. In this work, a series of hierarchical porous carbon nanotubes (CNT)/MOF-199 were synthesized by adjusting the content of N-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP) in the solvent components, and scattered in stearic acid (SA) to obtain a novel composite PCM. The results show that there is a nearly linear relationship between the impregnation ratio, crystallization fraction and impregnation efficiency of PCMs and the mesoporous content of the supporting materials at the maximum loading rate of 70 wt%, which may provide an idea for selecting MOFs supporting materials for PCMs. The latent heat of SA/CNT/MOF-199-2 (SA/CM-2) composite PCM is 97.1/96.2 J·g−1, with a heat loss percentage of only 0.96%. Furthermore, when the lithium-ion battery is discharged 2C at −20 °C, SA/CM-2 used as insulation material can increase the discharge energy by 8.27%. Accordingly, this novel composite PCMs would be hopefully applied to thermal optimization of batteries at low temperatures.

Synthesis of Hierarchical CdS/NiS Photocatalysts Using Ni-MOF-74 as Template for Efficient Ethanol Conversion and Hydrogen Production under Visible Light.

The conversion of ethanol into high-valuable chemicals and H2 by photocatalytic process provides a sustainable approach to produce carbon-chain-prolonged chemicals and hydrogen energy. In this article, Ni-MOF-74 was added to fabricate the hierarchical CdS/NiS-N composites with an elevated specific surface area during the hydrothermal synthesis of CdS microsphere, and the Ni-MOF-74 facilitate the self-assemble growth of CdS and provide a source of Ni for the formation of NiS. The as-prepared photocatalyst was subjected to photocatalytic ethanol conversion, and the hierarchical composite material CdS/NiS-N (100) formed by adding 100 mg of Ni-MOF-74 exhibits the highest photocatalytic activity and stability in an ethanol aqueous solution with a water content of 10 %. Under visible light irradiation, the conversion rate of ethanol reached 15.2 % at the photocatalytic reaction of 5 h. The selectivity of 2,3-butanediol(2,3-BDO) was 25 %, and the selectivity of acetaldehyde(AA) was 63 %. Through various characterizations, it has been proven that a large specific surface area and the coupling interface between CdS and NiS are key factors in improving photocatalytic performance. This work provides an effective strategy for constructing photocatalysts with coupled cocatalysts/semiconductors and large specific surface areas.

Dendritic micro-mesoporous composites via nano-assembly strategy towards high-efficiency catalysts for hydrodesulfurization of dibenzothiophenes

Based on the three-dimensional center-radial framework structure of dendritic mesoporous silica nanospheres (DMSNs), a unique type of hierarchical micro-mesoporous composite material, namely, Beta-DMSNs (BD) was prepared through a nano-assembly method, which was utilized as superior supports for high-efficiency catalysts (NiMo/BD) for hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of dibenzothiophene (DBT) and 4,6-dimethyldibenzothiophene (4,6-DMDBT). The controllable introduction of Beta nanocrystals endows the NiMo/BD catalysts with more acidic and catalytic active sites, and shows no influence on the dendritic morphology of the mesoporous supports, resulting in the remarkable HDS performance of NiMo/BD catalysts. Owing to the dendritic open channels, high surface area, abundant acidic sites and highly dispersed MoS2 active phases, the optimized NiMo/BD exhibited superior HDS activities of 99.1% and 98.3% for DBT and 4,6-DMDBT, respectively, with the optimal reaction rate constant of 3.0 × 10−7 mol g−1 s−1 and 2.4 × 10−7 mol g−1 s−1, and with the turnover frequency of 5.9 × 10−4 s−1 and 4.8 × 10−4 s−1. Besides, the enhanced Brønsted acid and the synergistic effect of Brønsted & Lewis acid contributed to the superior isomerization selectivity for 4,6-DMDBT, which was conducive to its HDS.

3D printed hierarchical interpenetrating phase composites with multi-scale mechanical energy absorption mechanisms

Lightweight, strong, and energy-absorbing materials are highly sought after in practical engineering applications. To this end, interpenetrating phase composites (IPC) stand as a novel class of composite materials to better leverage the properties of their constituents. Their structural design, however, has been limited to only specific structural features at a certain length scale in the existing studies. Inspired by the hierarchical composite materials in nature, this work proposes a novel concept of hierarchical interpenetrating phase composites (HIPC) by polymer infiltration into 3D printed hierarchical porous ceramic lattices. The hierarchical porous alumina lattices have up to three levels of porosity, including 3D printed macropores (≈300 μm), emulsion-templated micropores (≈10 μm), and sub-micropores (<1 μm) from partial sintering. Upon epoxy infiltration, three-level HIPC is constructed with hierarchically incorporated epoxy domains and alumina-epoxy interfaces, which leads to its unique multi-scale mechanical energy absorption mechanisms. Featuring a particularly porous and lightweight ceramic lattice, three-level HIPC exhibits an excellent combination of high specific compressive strength (64.6 kN m/kg), specific flexural strength (39.2 kN m/kg), and SEA (18.4 kJ/kg). In addition, even with a low ceramic content, three-level HIPC can effectively enhance the thermal conductivity via its hierarchically continuous ceramic microstructure. Therefore, our three-level HIPC has demonstrated impressive mechanical and thermal enhancement with its exquisite hierarchical architecture. The hierarchical structural engineering approach also represents a paradigm shift from constructing single-scale IPCs to multi-scale HIPCs and can be extended to other material combinations for high-performance structural and functional materials.

Highly recyclable and efficient piezocatalyst of Nafion decorated MoS2 with hierarchical structure for organic pollutants degradation

The piezocatalytic effect is a promising approach for the efficient degradation of organic pollutants. However, directly dispersing such catalysts in aqueous media introduces other issues including media purification (since it constitutes a secondary pollutant), and catalyst recyclability. In this work, a highly recyclable hierarchical composite material, MoS2 decorated onto carbon felt with further coated by Nafion (Nf-MSCF), was demonstrated to be an efficient piezocatalyst for organic pollutants degradation. The hierarchical Nf-MSCF catalyst structure designed in this way exhibited strong piezocatalytic performance as well as stability and durability. It achieved a high efficiency of removing 98% of Rhodamine B (RhB) pollutants in water after 4 min under ultrasound and this efficiency was maintained even after 300 min of ultrasound. Such excellent properties were attributed to the combined effects of high piezocatalytic activity of MoS2 nanosheets, high specific surface area of carbon felt, and improved cation adsorption as well as stability resulting from surface modification by the Nafion layer. The reactive oxygen species generated was verified and analyzed by electron spin resonance measurements and radical trapping experiments. The Zeta potentials were measured to confirm the more negatively charged surface brought about by Nafion modification. Finally, combining COMSOL Multiphysics simulation and piezoelectric voltage measurement with energy band theory, the possible piezocatalytic mechanism of the structure was proposed. This work provides a facile strategy to prepare recyclable and high efficiency piezocatalysts, and further promotes the practical applications of piezocatalysis.

Glow Stick‐Inspired Multilayered Composites with Damage Self‐Reporting and Self‐Healing Properties for Aquatic Environments

Materials are inevitable to suffer from mechanical damage such as scratches or cuts when they are exposed to the marine environment. Herein, a hierarchical composite material is fabricated, which demonstrates the self‐reporting and self‐healing behaviors in aquatic environments including deionized water, seawater, acidic, and basic aqueous solutions. The composite material is constructed of a five‐layer structure and shows excellent responsiveness to water molecules. After the material is damaged underwater, the chemiluminescence reaction comes into being quickly and the luminescence signal can last for over 3 h, allowing for timely and rapid reporting of damage. Furthermore, materials demonstrate high stretchability and self‐healing behavior, making them possible to serve as soft products used in underwater environments.

Four distinct network patterns of supramolecular/polymer composite hydrogels controlled by formation kinetics and interfiber interactions

Synthetic composite hydrogels comprising supramolecular fibers and covalent polymers have attracted considerable attention because their properties are similar to biological connective tissues. However, an in-depth analysis of the network structures has not been performed. In this study, we discovered the composite network can be categorized into four distinct patterns regarding morphology and colocalization of the components using in situ, real-time confocal imaging. Time-lapse imaging of the network formation process reveals that the patterns are governed by two factors, the order of the network formation and the interactions between the two different fibers. Additionally, the imaging studies revealed a unique composite hydrogel undergoing dynamic network remodeling on the scale of a hundred micrometers to more than one millimeter. Such dynamic properties allow for fracture-induced artificial patterning of a network three dimensionally. This study introduces a valuable guideline to the design of hierarchical composite soft materials.

Design and characterization of hierarchical aluminosilicate composite materials for Cs entrapment: Adsorption efficiency tied to microstructure

The growing quantity of nuclear waste and the serious threats to the environment challenge researchers to innovate and target new waste form technologies. In the past decades, considerable efforts have been devoted to developing highly selective sorbents followed by safe disposal with the assurance of chemical stability and robust retention performance. Zeolite-containing geopolymers are regarded as a possible 2-in-1 material able to both capture and sequester elements such as Cs in bed fixed column application perspective. These composites show promise for combining extraction properties of zeolite powder due to its crystalline structure (high capacity and selective adsorption), with the tunable microstructure and the shaping feasibility of the geopolymer binder. For the development of materials devoted to Cs immobilization, porous zeolite/geopolymer composites were prepared by dispersing NaY zeolite particles in a geopolymer binder. The influence of the structural properties of such composites on their ability to entrap a large amount of Cs by an ionic exchange process was notably studied. Composites' compositions, porosities, morphologies and crystallinity were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), x-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and nitrogen adsorption/desorption studies. Experimental Cs sorption in batch mode was used to follow the ionic exchange phenomenon in these materials. Along with 5 wt% amount of zeolite in geopolymer improves the Cs adsorption performance offering multiple new adsorption sites. Additionally, the geopolymer mesopores are beneficial facilitating the access of Cs and its role as a binder is advantageous to tailor granular hierarchical structure for safer industrial application.

Preparation of hierarchical porous microspheres composite phase change material for thermal energy storage concrete in buildings

Phase change materials with high latent heat significantly reduce building energy consumption. However, the serious leakage issue, low thermal conductivity, and the poor photothermal response utterly hinder their wide application in architecture. We reported an effective strategy for constructing hierarchical porous composite microspheres (PCN) through spray drying, calcination, and acid activation, using palygorskite (Pal) as the raw material. PCN presented a spherical hierarchical porous structure constructed by crosslinking Pal nanofibers and cellulose nanocrystals in a particular proportion. Paraffin-PCN (P-PCN) composite phase change materials (PCMs) with high shape stability, excellent photothermal conversion ability and latent heat storage capacity were synthesized. The heat preservation time of the P-PCN natural cooling from 35 °C to 30 °C is approximately twice that of the P-Pal. The P-PCN indicates obvious advantages in building thermal management, with the melting enthalpy promoted to 130.2 J/g. Further, the P-PCN-based building materials (P-PCN-B) with the P-PCN and the building aggregate maintain superior light-thermal energy conversion and thermal properties after multiple cycles. The P-PCN-B indicates outstanding mechanical properties (compression strength reaching 14.2 MPa) and flame-retarded properties. This work provides an innovative design strategy for developing multifunctional intelligent energy storage concrete and paves the way for the sustainable utilization of energy storage materials.

Preparation and application of uniform TiO2 electrospun nanofiber based on pickering emulsion stabilized by TiO2/amphiphilic sodium alginate/polyoxyethylene

Control over the self-assembly of micro- and nano-scopic building blocks is highly important but very challenging in the fabrication of many hierarchical composite materials. We prepared a novel electrospun nanofiber on the basis of Pickering emulsion synergy-stabilized by titanium dioxide/modified sodium alginate/polyoxyethylene(TiO2/Ugi-Alg/PEO). The emulsion stability was evaluated using turbiscan stability index, rheology and confocal laser scanning microscope. The results showed that TiO2/Ugi-Alg/PEO could form a relatively thick interfacial particle film at the oil-water interface, which was helpful to reduce the extent of agglomeration among droplets due to the steric hindrance mechanism. Pickering emulsion was utilized as a template to prepare nanofibers with uniform and orderly distribution of TiO2 by electrospinning technology, which had a good photodegradation effect on pesticide lambda-cyhalothrin residues. The self-assembly of nanoparticles at the oil-water interface and its combination with electrospinning technology to prepare nanofibers containing TiO2 photodegradation activity are expected to be a new strategy to avoid pesticide long persistence period in the soil environment.

Hierarchical heterogeneous one-dimensional problem in linear viscoelastic media

We address the homogenisation of a linear viscoelastic and hierarchical composite material in a one-dimensional (1D) framework via a three-scale asymptotic homogenisation method. We consider a family of heterogeneous problems with periodic, rapidly-oscillating and piece-wise coefficients that model a structure with two hierarchical levels of organisation. Here, we assume continuity contact conditions at the interfaces among the constituents and set a straightforward geometrical configuration in order to gain a better insight of the multiscale problem. The main goal is to provide a general overview of the procedure and validate the approach by means of a comparison between the solution of the original heterogeneous problem, the homogenised problem and the formal asymptotic solution. In addition, we show that the three-scale approach presents a clear improvement over the recursive two-scale one, and we illustrate the convergence of the solutions towards the solution of the homogenised problem when the asymptotic parameters approach.

Experimental evaluation of fracture properties of bovine hip cortical bone using elastic-plastic fracture mechanics.

Understanding the fracture mechanics of bone is very important in both the medical and bioengineering field. Bone is a hierarchical natural composite material of nanoscale collagen fibers and inorganic material. This study investigates and presents the fracture toughness of bovine cortical bone by using elastic plastic fracture mechanics. The J-integral was used as a parameter to calculate the energies utilized in both elastic deformation (Jel) and plastic deformation (Jpl) of the hipbone fracture. Twenty four different types of specimens, i.e. longitudinal compact tension (CT) specimens, transverse CT specimens, and also rectangular unnotched specimens for tension in longitudinal and transverse orientation, were cut from the bovine hip bone of the middle diaphysis. All CT specimens were prepared according to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) E1820 standard and were tested at room temperature. The results showed that the average total J-integral in transverse CT fracture specimens is 26% greater than that of longitudinal CT fracture specimens. For longitudinal-fractured and transverse-fractured cortical specimens, the energy used in the elastic deformation was found to be 2.8-3 times less than the energy used in the plastic deformation. The findings indicate that the overall fracture toughness measured using the J-integral is significantly higher than the toughness calculated by the stress intensity factor. Therefore, J-integral should be employ to compute the fracture toughness of cortical bone.

Hierarchical multi-yolk-shell copper oxide@copper-1, 3, 5-benzenetricarboxylate as an ultrastable anode for lithium ion batteries

The capacity attenuation of transition metal oxides (TMOs) and metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) is the obstacle for practical application in lithium ion batteries, due to the extensive volume variation upon charge/discharge cycles. Herein, a hierarchical composite material with copper oxide (CuO) multi-yolks and copper-1, 3, 5-benzenetricarboxylate (Cu-BTC) shell is synthesized by a facile method to study the effect of the hierarchical structure on the electrochemical performance. The porosity and pore volume of CuO@Cu-BTC composites are optimized to buffer the volume change and facilitate the infiltration of electrolytes by altering reaction conditions. The CuO@Cu-BTC (20 h) with the largest surface area and pore volume delivers an excellent reversible capacity of 780.7 mAh g−1 at 200 mA g−1 after 100 cycles, and ultrastable long-term performance with a specific capacity of 569 mAh g−1 at a current density of 1000 mA g−1 after 900 cycles. The corresponding full battery shows moderate capacity retention from 149.4 to 125.8 mAh g−1 after 70 cycles, with a specific capacity retention of 84.2%, based on the mass of lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) at 0.2 C (1 C = 170 mA g−1). This strategy applies copper oxide as the metal source of the coordination compound, as well as the internal yolks, which can be extended to the in-situ construction of other hierarchical composites, providing a new avenue for practical application of TMOs and MOFs as anode materials.

Design and Characterization of Hierarchical Aluminosilicate Composite Materials for Cs Entrapment: Ionic Exchange Efficiency Tied to Microstructure

Design and Characterization of Hierarchical Aluminosilicate Composite Materials for Cs Entrapment: Ionic Exchange Efficiency Tied to Microstructure

Honeycomb-like biomass carbon with planted CoNi3 alloys to form hierarchical composites for high-performance supercapacitors

It is a significant challenge to combine a large pseudocapacitive material with conductive honeycomb-like carbon frameworks for long-term stable supercapacitors. Herein, hierarchical composite materials are manufactured by using biomass carbon, ZIF-67, and a mild pore former (Ni(CH3COO)2) to generate alloy-type CoNi3 nanoparticles planted into conductive honeycomb-like carbon frameworks (C@ZIF-67-T). Meanwhile, the effect of carbonization temperature on the honeycomb-like pore size and the structure of composite materials is systematically investigated. As the honeycomb-like carbon skeleton structure guarantees good ionic and electronic conductivities and a large contact area, whereas the alloy nanoparticles provide a rich redox reaction for Faradaic capacitance. Therefore, the as-obtained C@ZIF-67–600 electrode presents a remarkable specific capacitance of 1044.8 F · g−1 at 1.0 A · g−1 and an ultra-long cycling stability with 30,000 cycles at 5.0 A · g−1 in a three-electrode system. In addition, the assembled C@ZIF-67–600//activated carbon asymmetrical supercapacitor exhibit a high specific capacitance of 274.4F · g−1 at 1.0 A · g−1 and a long-term stable lifespan with a capacitance retention of 87% after 20,000 cycles at 5.0 A · g−1. Besides, the asymmetrical supercapacitor also presents a maximum energy density of 85.13 Wh · kg−1 at a power density of 750 W · kg−1. Such superior electrochemical performance demonstrate that the designed electrode material provides a promising energy storage application.

A Hierarchical Nico-LDH/Hnt Nanocomposite with a Core-Shell Structure for High-Performance Battery-Type Supercapacitor

Nickel cobalt layered double hydroxides (NiCo-LDHs) show great potential as electrode materials of battery-type supercapacitors, while the intrinsic low conductivity and possible agglomeration limit its wider application. In this work, a hierarchical composite material with a core-shell structure was prepared by self-assembling NiCo-LDHs nanosheets on dual surface-modified halloysite nanotubes (D-HNTs) via in-situ electrodeposition and hydrothermal method. HNTs were pretreated by a dual surface modification for the first time including a carbonization process and cobalt doping to enhance electrical conductivity and chemical stability. This multicomponent nanocomposite, NiCo-LDH/D-HNTs, shows a three-dimensional construction and has a specific capacity of 1401.4 C g-1 at 1 A g-1, a rate capability of 52.9% increasing the current density to 30 A g-1, and cycling stability of 80.8% after 2000 cycles. With the tubular support, the electrochemical properties of NiCo-LDHs can be extended in addition with the pseudocapacitance of HNTs. Besides the excellent electrochemical performance and the green preparation process, NiCo-LDH/D-HNTs nanocomposites possess many advantages of abundance in nature, hydrophilicity, low cost and scalability. This nanocomposite can be considered as a promising, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective electrode material for supercapacitors and other energy storage devices.