Synergetic effect of synthesized sulfonated polyaniline/quaternized graphene and its application as a high-performance supercapacitor electrode, Journal of Materials Science, 2017.
Abstract
A new hybrid sulfonated polyaniline/quaternized graphene (s-PANINa/q-graphene) is prepared by electrostatic and π–π interactions between positively charged quaternized graphene (q-graphene) and negatively charged sulfonated polyaniline (s-PANINa). The introduction of the s-PANINa into the q-graphene sheets leads to the formation of nanohybrid with layered morphology and high electrical conductivity. The electrochemical performance of s-PANINa/q-graphene nanohybrid as an electrode material for supercapacitors application is evaluated using cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge tests in 1.0 M of H2SO4 as an electrolyte. The maximum capacitance of 682 F g−1 is obtained for s-PANINa/q-graphene nanohybrid at the current density of 1.0 A g−1. 70.0% retention of the initial specific capacitance (from current density of 1.0–30 A g−1), which indicates the excellent rate capability and consequently high power characteristics of s-PANINa/q-graphene nanohybrid. Moreover, the proposed nanohybrid shows an excellent stability (less than 5% drop after 2000 cycles) with about 100% of coulombic efficiency. The improved electrochemical performance because of the synergistic effects between q-graphene and the s-PANINa indicates that nanohybrid is a good candidate for high-performance supercapacitors.