In this work, the application of high specific surface area nitrogen-doped porous carbon prepared from polyurethane (TPUC) as a supercapacitor electrode is reported. Five samples are prepared with KOH as activator at different activation temperatures and applied to research the electrochemical properties of supercapacitor. The problems of uneven distribution and loss of nitrogen atoms are solved by in situ doping. The conductivity and wettability of activated carbon are improved by nitrogen-doped. The maximum specific capacitance (up to 527 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1) and outstanding cycling stability (up to 342 F g−1 after 10,000 cycles) are obtained by the TPUC-800 sample (specific surface area of 3575 m2 g−1). These features are explained for the improvement of the effective specific surface area and the shortened ion diffusion distance in carbon electrode due to nitrogen-doped and the enhancement of hydrophilicity of carbon surface. The results reveal that such a simple strategy of nitrogen-doped polyurethane is an efficient way to prepare promising nitrogen-doped porous carbons for supercapacitor with good performance.
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