High Surface Area Porous Carbon Research Articles

Preparation of Biomass-Derived High Specific Surface Area Carbon with Titanium Nitride Nanoparticles for Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

The widespread challenges facing lithium-sulfur batteries, including the low electrical conductivity of sulfur and its species, electrode volume fluctuations during cycling, and the lithium polysulfides shuttle effect, have hindered their commercialization and practical utility [1,2].Our study addresses these issues by incorporating titanium nitride (TiN) nanoparticles onto high specific surface area porous carbon, exploring this composite's potential as both a sulfur cathode host and separator modifier. The synthesis of the carbon/TiN composite involved two key stages: firstly, the in-situ growth of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles on the carbon surface utilizing titanium tetrachloride as a precursor; secondly, the conversion of the TiO2 nanoparticles to TiN nanoparticles through carbothermal nitridization (thermal treatment at 1400 ℃ for 4 hours in a nitrogen medium) [3,4].The lithium-sulfur cell employing the prepared C/TiN-25%@S cathode exhibited an initial discharge capacity of 1155 mAh g-1 at 0.2 C, maintaining a capacity exceeding 700 mAh g-1 after 100 cycles. Notably, the lithium-sulfur cell utilizing the C/TiN-25%@S cathode and a C/TiN-modified separator demonstrated enhanced cycling performance, delivering an initial discharge capacity of 1623 mAh g-1 with retention of over 1126 mAh g-1 after 100 charge/discharge cycles at 0.2 C. Acknowledgments This research was funded by the Science Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Grant No. AP19677708).

Oxygen Vacancy-Controlled CuOx/N,Se Co-Doped Porous Carbon via Plasma-Treatment for Enhanced Electro-Reduction of Nitrate to Green Ammonia.

The electrochemical nitrate reduction reaction (NO3RR) is of significance in regards of environmentally friendly issues and green ammonia production. However, relatively low performance with a competitive hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is a challenge to overcome for the NO3RR. In this study, oxygen vacancy-controlled copper oxide (CuOx) catalysts through a plasma treatment are successfully prepared and supported on high surface area porous carbon that are co-doped with N, Se species for its enhanced electrochemical properties. The oxygen vacancy-increased CuOx catalyst supported on the N,Se co-doped porous carbon (CuOx-H/NSePC) exhibited the highest NO3RR performance with faradaic efficiency (FE) of 87.2% and yield of 7.9mg cm-2h-1 for the ammonia production, representing significant enhancements of FE and ammonia yield as compared to the un-doped or the oxygen vacancy-decreased catalysts. This high performance should be attributed to a significant increase in the catalytic active sites with facilitated energetics from strategies of doping the catalytic materials and weakening the N─O bonding strength for the adsorption of NO3 - ions on the modulated oxygen vacancies. This results show a promise that co-doping of heteroatoms and regulating of oxygen vacancies can be key factors for performance enhancement, suggesting new guidelines for effective catalyst design of NO3RR.

A Highly Effective Polysulfide-Trapping Approach for the Development of High Energy Density, Scalable Lithium-Sulfur Batteries

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries are identified as one of the most promising next-generation battery technologies owing to their high theoretical specific energy, sustainability, and affordability. However, the commercialization of Li-S batteries has been hindered by severe technical challenges, including the lithium polysulfide (PS) dissolution/shuttling effect, a major cause of fast capacity degradation over cycling. We demonstrated that, for the first time, nanolayer polymer coated high surface area porous carbons (NPCs) were coated directly on sulfur electrodes (NPC-S), which led to a high specific capacity of ∼1,600 mAh g−1 approaching the theoretical specific capacity limit in the NPC-S based Li-S batteries. The NPC-S based Li-S batteries maintained their large initial specific capacity gain compared with the Baseline-S based Li-S batteries (control) over extended cycles. A follow-on study indicated that the NPC-S approach is a necessary and critical step to boost the near-theoretical specific capacity while being stabilized over long cycles with a synergistic strategy. Our experimental and computational results suggest that NPC coated on sulfur electrodes provides not only an effective and strong PS-trapping power but also an increased redox reaction kinetics for sulfur ↔ PS’s conversions during battery charge and discharge, rendering the realization of near-theoretical discharge specific capacity in the NPC-S based Li-S batteries. The findings presented in this study may inspire a new, simple, low-cost, and commercially scalable approach, without adding any appreciable dead weight or volume to the batteries, in the effort to tackle the technical challenges facing SOA Li-S batteries.

High surface area porous carbon derived from chitosan: CH3COOH/(NH4)2HPO4 dual-assisted hydrothermal carbonization synthesis and its application in supercapacitor

The properties of electrode materials like porous carbon are significant for energy storage devices like supercapacitors. In this work, CH3COOH/(NH4)2HPO4 dual-assisted hydrothermal carbonization (DA-HTC) is used to prepare chitosan derived porous carbon. The effects of addition sequence and ratio of the two additives on hydrochar and porous carbon were studied systematically. It is found that the DA-HTC can further improve the carbonization degree and change surface state of the hydrochar, leading to optimized KOH activation. Compared with traditional HTC or single additive assisted HTC, improved specific area (3423 m2/g) and electrochemical performance were achieved when 11 mL acetic acid and 2 g (NH4)2HPO4 were added in a stepwise manner (CPC-Ac1PS). In a three-electrode system, the specific capacitance of CPC-Ac1PS reached 419.6 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1. Retention rate of 95 % was achieved after 15,000 charge and discharge cycles at10 A g−1. Herein, the results and discoveries may provide a significant example for further rational design of multi-additive assisted hydrothermal systems and better structural tuning of biomass molecules derived porous carbon.

Nanoporous Carbon Materials from Terminalia bellirica Seed for Iodine and Methylene Blue Adsorption and High-Performance Supercapacitor Applications

Abstract Here we report the methylene blue adsorption and energy storage supercapacitance performances of the nanoporous activated carbons obtained by the zinc chloride (ZnCl2) activation of biowaste, Terminalia bellirica (Barro) seed stone. The activation was performed at lower temperatures (400–700 °C) under an inert nitrogen gas atmosphere. The total specific surface area and pore volume range from 1077 to 1303 m2 g−1 and 0.752 to 0.873 cm3 g−1, depending on the carbonization temperature. Due to the well-developed porosity, the sample with optimal surface area showed excellent iodine and methylene blue adsorption properties with a maximum iodine number and methylene blue value of 909.8 mg g−1 and 357.2 mg g−1, respectively. Batch adsorption studies revealed that the optimum methylene blue adsorption is favorable in an alkaline medium, with a contact time of 270 min and an adsorbent dose of 8 g L−1, respectively. The Langmuir isotherm model could best explain the equilibrium adsorption with a monolayer adsorption capacity of 312.5 mg g−1. The electrochemical measurements performed in a three-electrode system revealed a high specific capacitance of 319 F g−1 at 1 A g−1. Furthermore, the electrode retained 46% capacitance at 50 A g−1 with an excellent cycle life of 98.5% after 10,000 consecutive charging/discharging cycles. These results imply that a biowaste Terminalia bellirica seed has a considerable potential to produce high surface area porous carbons materials desired in adsorption technology and high-performance supercapacitor applications.

Spider silk-derived nanoporous activated carbon fiber for CO2 capture and CH4 and H2 storage

High surface area porous carbon with fibrous microstructure offers a broader application potential than powder form. However, controlling the microstructure with high porosity is difficult, and if possible then through a complex and time-consuming synthesis method. Herein, the development of high surface area nanoporous activated carbon fiber by activating spider silk (natural biomaterials) using potassium hydroxide is being reported. The specific surface area (SSA) and total pore volume for the developed material were 2730 m2/g and 1.56 cc/g, respectively, and its surface contain high oxygen content. Its high SSA and oxygen-rich surface provide an enhanced CO2 capture and energy carrier gases (H2 and CH4) storage capacity. The CO2 capture capacity at 0 °C and 25 °C, 25 bar, were estimated to be 23.6 and 15.4 mmol/g, respectively, among the highest reported values for porous carbon fiber. Moreover, the developed sample has shown the CH4 storage capacity of 8.6 mmol/g at 0 °C, 25 bar, and for H2, it was 4.1 wt% at − 196 °C, 25 bar. In addition, the developed carbon material demonstrated an easy regeneration and almost negligible loss in uptake capacity, confirmed by adsorption-desorption cycles. The observation of high porosity and promising gas storage and recyclability in spider silk-derived activated carbon fiber indicates that the employed method can effectively convert biomaterials into high surface area activated carbon fibers for advanced energy and environmental applications.

Rice husk derived porous carbon embedded with Co3Fe7 nanoparticles towards microwave absorption

For eliminating electromagnetic pollution caused by harmful electromagnetic waves, it is urgent to develop electromagnetic absorption materials with strong refection loss and wide bands. In this study, the rice husk was employed as raw material to prepare lightweight and high specific surface area porous carbon (RHC). Subsequently, using RHC as the carrier, the RHC@Co3Fe7 nanocomposites were obtained by embedding Co3Fe7 nanoparticles into the pore of the RHC. Under the synergistic influence of the multiple reflection/scattering of porous structure, magnetic resonance of Co3Fe7 nanoparticles, as well as electron polarization aroused by the heterogeneous interface between RHC and Co3Fe7, the minimal reflection loss (RLmin) of the optimal product reaches to −68.106 dB at 16.24 GHz with the matching thickness of 1.44 mm. Meanwhile, for the optimal sample, the widest effective absorption bandwidth (EAB) is nearly 5 GHz covering the frequency range of 10.96–15.92 GHz at a matching thickness of 1.79 mm. The excellent absorption performance of RHC@Co3Fe7 nanocomposites may provide a new strategy for the preparation of lightweight, thin thickness, strong absorption and wide bandwidth material.

Redgum-derived high surface area porous carbon for electric double layer capacitors

• Red gum tree bark (RTB) derived activated carbon was prepared by the impregnation of KOH at 850 °C. • Enhanced supercapacitor performance in aqueous, organic, and ionic electrolytes for symmetric carbon/carbon electrode cells. • C-RTB offers a specific capacitance of >200 F g −1 with a large potential window of 3.5 V. • The fabricated device in ionic liquid was used to power an LED for more than 4 min after 10 s charging.

Biomass derived hierarchical porous carbon for supercapacitor application and dilute stream CO2 capture

High surface area porous carbons derived from sustainable biomass wastes are excellent functional materials for energy storage and gas sorption applications. Tasmanian Blue Gum (TBG) tree bark is selected as the raw material for preparing activated porous carbon (AC), using a simple KOH activation and carbonization method. The as-prepared AC-TBG sample possesses a hierarchically connected mesoporous structure having a surface area of 971 m2 g−1 with an average pore size of 2.2 nm. AC-TBG exhibits high electrochemical storage capacity as fabricated symmetric supercapacitor, with excellent specific capacitances of 212 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 current density retaining 90% of its capacitance after 5000 cycles. An outstanding maximum power density of 4.9 kW kg−1 was obtained for the EDLC in 1 M KOH at a maximum energy density of 18.84 Wh kg−1, which is among the highest values reported in this class of materials. Furthermore, exploiting the multiscale porosity and oxygen/hydroxyl functionalities on the surface, AC-TBG was deployed for CO2 capture from concentrated source as well as dilute 4% CO2 simulated flue stream. AC-TBG showed an excellent uptake of 4.5 mmol/g of CO2 at 1 bar and 0 °C for pure CO2 and a working capacity of 1.6 mmol/g at 40 °C in 4% CO2. This work provides a simple, and feasible strategy for converting sustainable waste biomass to value-added activated carbon with potential applications in high-performance energy storage and greenhouse gas capture.

Nitrogen-Doped High Surface Area Porous Carbon Material Derived from Biomass and Ionic Liquid for High-Performance Supercapacitors

In this work, bioderived high surface area, porous activated carbons (ACs) are synthesized from dried Sterculia foetida (SF) fruit shells via KOH activation. Further, for high-performance supercapacitor (SC) application, the nitrogen-doped AC (NAC) has been derived by pyrolysis of a nitrogen-enriched ionic liquid (IL) and AC mixture. Herein, aprotic 1-ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium dicyanamide ([EMIM][DCN]) IL is used as a nitrogen precursor. A series of NACs has been successfully developed by tuning the weight ratio of IL and AC. The optimized NAC (2:1) exhibits suitable graphitization degree, hierarchical micromesopores to ensure effective electrolyte diffusion, high surface area, and enhanced wettability. Further, in a three-electrode configuration, the NAC (2:1) electrode shows a high specific capacitance of 567 F g–1 at 0.5 A g–1. Moreover, a symmetric two-electrode SC device was constructed, providing excellent specific energy of 13 Wh kg–1 at 300 W kg–1. Overall, this study presents the positive aspects of an IL as a nitrogen precursor to synthesize high surface area NACs as a promising electrode material for SC applications.

The effects of local graphitization on the charging mechanisms of microporous carbon supercapacitor electrodes

The electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM) technique has been used to study the charge mechanisms in two TiC-derived nanoporous carbons (CDC), synthesized at 800 ℃ and 1100 ℃. These two carbons have a similar pore size and porous volume, but the CDC prepared at 1100 °C shows a more graphitic microstructure. The EQCM study revealed that the charge storage mechanism in the CDC-800 is mainly controlled by a counter-ion adsorption process, while an expanded ion-exchange process was observed for the CDC-1100. Combined with the potential of zero charge (PZC), these measurements suggest a strong interaction between the anions and graphitic carbon. For the first time, we provide experimental evidence that the local carbon structure affects the charge storage mechanism of the electrical double-layer capacitance in high surface area porous carbons.

A single step solid NH4F-assisted method for the removal of hard silica template to obtain microporous carbon for electrochemical applications

A new method for removing silica templates to prepare high surface area porous carbons is reported. In this method solid NH4F is used as a sacrificial agent to remove silica as SiF4 in a single step process, thus eliminating the corrosive methods by using HF/NaOH in multi-step processes. This method is versatile to enhance the surface area and porous-network of carbons at higher calcination temperatures. The carbon sample prepared at 900 °C exhibits high surface area (861 m2 g−1) among others and shows specific capacitance of 240 F g−1 at current density 0.5 A g−1.

Unraveling porogenesis in nitrogen rich K+-activated carbons

Though potassium activation is one of the most common methods for producing high surface area porous carbons, a detailed understanding of the influence of precursor properties on the resulting physicochemical properties is lacking. To this end, polycondensation products of sucrose and melamine served as a useful platform to understand the role of precursor N content on the surface chemistry and porosity after potassium activation. By manipulating the nitrogen:carbon:potassium ratios in the precursors, a suite of porous carbons with variable surface areas (528–2740 m2/g) and nitrogen contents (0–22 at%) were synthesized. Analysis of both the byproducts and the carbons’ resulting physicochemical properties revealed a complex interplay of various known reaction schemes (viz., gas evolution, carbothermal reduction, chemical etching, and molten salt templating), which are not mutually exclusive and can each contribute to the resulting porosity and surface chemistry. With this comprehensive study and careful control of the precursor composition, we define specific nitrogen:potassium regimes where certain porogenesis pathways dominate. Our work emphasizes that straightforward mechanisms focused on carbothermal reduction and exfoliation cannot always explain porogenesis in nitrogen-rich carbons. This work endeavors to serve as a roadmap for greater understanding and control of the structure and chemistry of nitrogen-rich, potassium-activated porous carbons.

Low Temperature Performance of Solid Electrochemical Capacitors: Effects of Electrolytes Additives and Electrode Design

Solid-state, thin, and flexible electrochemical capacitors (ECs) can provide energy storage for next-generation wearable electronics such as smart textiles and medical sensors. One of the enablers for high performance and safe electrical double layer capacitors ECs is neutral pH polymer electrolytes due to their wide operating potentials, good ionic conductivity and benign chemical nature [1-3]. Nonetheless, the operation temperature is often limited to above the freezing point of water. For example, a polymer electrolyte based on Na2SO4 ion conductor and polyacrylamide (PAM) host has shown a promising performance at ambient (good shelf-life >30 days and wide 1.8 V window with activated carbon [4]), but its performance degraded drastically at sub-zero conditions [5]. Furthermore, it is of practical importance to understand the effect of high surface area porous carbon materials (e.g. carbon nanotube (CNT) [6-7] or activated carbon (AC) [7-9]) on solid EC at low temperatures, which has not been extensively characterized. To ensure robustness of EC devices operating under winter/sub-arctic and outer space conditions, it is necessary to develop proper polymer electrolytes and the right match of electrode/electrolyte for low temperature ECs.In this study, the performances of solid EC cells constructed with carbon electrodes and Na2SO4-PAM-based electrolytes were assessed at ambient and low temperatures. The objectives were to (i) improve the performance of Na2SO4-PAM electrolytes using anti-icing additives and (ii) elucidate the key characteristics of electrodes (i.e. pore structure and electrode loading/thickness) affecting cell performance at low temperatures.To improve the low temperature performance of the Na2SO4-PAM electrolyte, several anti-icing additives (e.g. dimethyl sulfoxide/DMSO or ethylene glycol/EGly) have been investigated and shown promising improvement to the ionic conductivity of the electrolyte at low temperatures. Leveraging the polymer electrolyte with these additives, capacitive CV profiles were attained at -10 ˚C (Fig. 1a), much more pronounced than their binary baseline. The cell performance with the DMSO-containing ternary electrolyte was then evaluated using either CNT or AC electrodes at various carbon loadings (Fig. 1b). Although solid cells with AC electrodes demonstrated higher capacitance at ambient, those with CNT electrodes retained more capacitance at low temperature. This is likely due to better ion accessibility into CNT electrodes with relatively more open pores. Meanwhile, AC electrodes with lower carbon loading have higher capacitance retention at low temperature due to better electrode utilization in a thinner electrode. These observations will provide the guideline for designing the next generation of ECs that are suitable for low temperature applications.

(Invited) Pt Alloy Octahedral Nanoparticle Catalysts from Screening Studies to Fuel Cell Measurements

In proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) hydrogen is oxidized at the anode and oxygen is reduced at the cathode, where Pt-based catalysts represent the state of the art. Due to the sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) kinetics, Pt loadings per vehicles are still rather high when compared to platinum-group metal (PGM) loadings in combustion engine cars ( ~ 5 gPGM/vehicle in light-duty internal combustion engine vehicles),1 impacting the cost of fuel cell electric vehicles.Octahedral PtNi nanoparticles have been reported to achieve extremely high ORR mass activity in rotating disk electrode (RDE) experiments,2 which would allow for a significant decrease of Pt loadings in fuel cells. In addition, the introduction of a third metal (X) as a surface dopant has been recently shown to have beneficial effects on the RDE performance, enhancing both activity and stability.3 However, despite these promising steps toward shape-stable PtNiX octahedral nanoparticles, the morphological stability and the performance in membrane electrode assembly (MEA)-based fuel cell measurements still needs to be improved to match and surpass the state of the art Pt and de-alloyed Pt alloy catalysts.4 In this contribution, we will show the results of our recent investigations that were aimed at improving the performance of PtNi based octahedral nanoparticle catalysts towards integration in low Pt loading cathodes for PEMFCs. These include exploration of different dopants, Pt loadings and carbon supports. Preliminary screening by RDE identified promising dopants (i.e. Mo4 and other transition metals) and Pt:Ni atomic ratios. The activity and stability of the PtNiX octahedral nanoparticles were then investigated in a comparative study by using different carbon supports, including high surface area porous carbon. Finally, selected catalysts were investigated in MEA-based fuel cells and their activity compared with state-of-the art reference Pt and PtNi alloy materials, measured under the same conditions. References A. Kongkanand and M. F. Mathias, J Phys Chem Lett, 2016, 7, 1127-1137.P. Strasser, Science, 2015, 349, 379-380.X. Q. Huang, Z. P. Zhao, L. Cao, Y. Chen, E. B. Zhu, Z. Y. Lin, M. F. Li, A. M. Yan, A. Zettl, Y. M. Wang, X. F. Duan, T. Mueller and Y. Huang, Science, 2015, 348, 1230-1234.F. Dionigi, C. C. Weber, M. Primbs, M. Gocyla, A. M. Bonastre, C. Spöri, H. Schmies, E. Hornberger, S. Kühl, J. Drnec, M. Heggen, J. Sharman, R. E. Dunin-Borkowski and P. Strasser, Nano Lett, 2019, 19, 6876-6885. Acknowledgements The GAIA project has received funding from the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen 2 Joint Undertaking under grant agreement No 826097. This Joint Undertaking receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, Hydrogen Europe and Hydrogen Europe Research.

Activation of Asphalt to Prepare High Surface Area Carbon Material

High surface area porous carbon material was prepared via a method of activating asphalt with pretreatment. The crystalline, textural structure, morphology, and surface functionalities of the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), diffuse reflectance FTIR spectroscopy (DRIFTS), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) techniques. When the asphalt was pretreated at 400 °C for 3 h under Ar flow, and then activated using KOH as activating agent at 800 °C for 3 h under Ar flow, the prepared porous carbon material has an amorphous nature and possesses a high surface area of 2460 m2/g, a narrow pore size distribution of 3 ∼ 5 nm, and a mean pore diameter of 3.8 nm.

A high specific surface area porous carbon skeleton derived from MOF for high-performance Lithium-ion capacitors

Lithium-ion capacitor (LICs) is expected to replace the traditional double-layer capacitor and lithium-ion battery as a new energy storage device. However, the slow de/intercalation of Li+ in battery-type electrodes (anode) limits the power density of lithium-ion capacitors (LICs). In this work, a high specific surface area porous carbon skeleton (Z-T-PC) is synthesized derived from MOF (Zn-TFBDC). Benefit from the large specific surface area and 3D conductive skeleton, the Z-T-PC shows that the sample has a high specific capacity and stable cycling performance as the LIC anode. The assembled asymmetric LICs exhibit high power density and energy density with Z-T-PC anode. The work provides new thinking for the application of the novel anode material of LICs.

Preparation of Cotton Fiber-derived Porous-carbon Materials and Their Application as High-performance Supercapacitors

ABSTRACT In this paper, high-surface area porous carbons are produced from cotton fibers by pre-oxidation and high temperatures activation pyrolysis treatment process based on the use of K2CO3 as pore-forming agent, and the more micro-pores were formed by adding ZnCl2 during the pyrolysis treatment process. The AC-K has plentiful bigger micropores or the macropores, AC-KZn has rich micropores and the certain number of mesopores. The AC-KZn shows excellent supercapacitance properties and cycle behavior of 5000 cycles, a high specific capacitance of 135Fg −1 can be achieved, which is higher than that of the AC-K carbon electrode.

Efficient Removal of Methylene Blue from Aqueous Solutions Using a High Specific Surface Area Porous Carbon Derived from Soybean Dreg.

Porous carbon material with high specific surface area was prepared from soybean dreg by a simple and effective two-step method (high temperature pyrolysis and activation). The structural characteristics of the synthesized carbon were evaluated by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), N2 adsorption/desorption measurements/techniques, an elemental analyzer (EA), scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), an X-ray diffractometer (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (Raman), a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (FTIR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The specific surface area of SDB-6-K was 2786 m2 g−1, the pore volume was 2.316 cm3 g−1, and the average pore size was 3.326 nm. The high specific surface area and effective functional groups of carbon material promoted the adsorption of methylene blue. The maximum adsorption capacity of SDB-6-K to methylene blue was 2636 mg g−1 at 318 K. The adsorption kinetic and isotherm data were most suitable for pseudo-second-order and Langmuir equations. The results showed that the adsorbent had excellent adsorptive ability and had good practical application potential in the field of dye wastewater treatment in the future.

Engineered Carbon Electrodes for High Performance Capacitive and Hybrid Energy Storage

ABSTRACT Here we demonstrate, the use of a bio-material coconut sprout (CS) as a single precursor to prepare highly efficient carbon-based electrode materials and a separator with excellent mechanical properties and good chemical stability, for both capacitive and hybrid energy storage systems. A hybrid sodium ion capacitor is fabricated using hard carbon derived from CS (CSDHC) as Na+ intercalating anode and high specific surface area porous carbon (SSA ~2000 m2 g−1) derived through KOH activation of CS (CSDPC) as a cathode material. The full cell device delivered specific energy of 88 Wh kg−1 at a specific power of 273 W kg−1, when cycled in a potential window of 1.5 - 4.0 V, and showed remarkable rate capability along with excellent long-term cycling stability. Further, symmetric supercapacitor cells are assembled using CSDPC in both aqueous and organic-based electrolytes, which delivered maximum specific energy of 24.7 Wh kg−1 at a specific power of 7.3 kW kg−1. Most interestingly, we used the spongy sprout as the separator in all the assembled cells, which showed excellent mechanical properties and good chemical stability even after 10000 cycles of charge and discharge. The present study will pave the way to explore bio-derived engineered carbon materials with unique structure design and tunability for energy-related applications