Journal article
Supercapacitor Electrodes Based on High-Purity Electrospun Polyaniline and Polyaniline-Carbon Nanotube Nanofibers
ACS applied materials & interfaces, v 8(33), pp 21261-21269
24 Aug 2016
PMID: 27467445
Featured in Collection : UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
Abstract
Freestanding, binder-free supercapacitor electrodes based on high-purity polyaniline (PANI) nanofibers were fabricated via a single step electrospinning process. The successful electrospinning of nanofibers with an unprecedentedly high composition of PANI (93 wt %) was made possible due to blending ultrahigh molecular weight poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) with PANI in solution to impart adequate chain entanglements, a critical requirement for electrospinning. To further enhance the conductivity and stability of the electrodes, a small concentration of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) was added to the PANI/PEO solution prior to electrospinning to generate PANI/CNT/PEO nanofibers (12 wt % CNTs). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) porosimetry were conducted to characterize the external morphology of the nanofibers. The electrospun nanofibers were further probed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The electroactivity of the freestanding PANI and PANI/CNT nanofiber electrodes was examined using cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge-discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Competitive specific capacitances of 308 and 385 F g(-1) were achieved for PANI and PANI-CNT based electrodes, respectively, at a current density of 0.5 A g(-1). Moreover, specific capacitance retentions of 70 and 81.4% were observed for PANI and PANI-CNT based electrodes, respectively, after 1000 cycles. The promising electrochemical performance of the fabricated electrodes, we believe, stems from the porous 3-D electrode structure characteristic of the nonwoven interconnected nanostructures. The interconnected nanofiber network facilitates efficient electron conduction while the inter- and intrafiber porosity enable excellent electrolyte penetration within the polymer matrix, allowing fast ion transport to the active sites.
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Details
- Title
- Supercapacitor Electrodes Based on High-Purity Electrospun Polyaniline and Polyaniline-Carbon Nanotube Nanofibers
- Creators
- Silas K Simotwo - Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Drexel University , 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United StatesChristopher DelRe - Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Drexel University , 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United StatesVibha Kalra - Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Drexel University , 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
- Publication Details
- ACS applied materials & interfaces, v 8(33), pp 21261-21269
- Publisher
- American Chemical Society; Washington, DC
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Chemical and Biological Engineering
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:000382179400016
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-84983541269
- Other Identifier
- 991014878122904721
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
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InCites Highlights
Data related to this publication, from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool:
- Web of Science research areas
- Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
- Nanoscience & Nanotechnology