1.8 V Aqueous Symmetric Carbon-Based Supercapacitors with Agarose-Bound Activated Carbons in an Acidic Electrolyte

The specific energy of an aqueous carbon supercapacitor is generally small, resulting mainly from a narrow potential window of aqueous electrolytes. Here, we introduced agarose, an ecologically compatible polymer, as a novel binder to fabricate an activated carbon supercapacitor, enabling a wider po...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Chih-Chung Lai, Feng-Hao Hsu, Su-Yang Hsu, Ming-Jay Deng, Kueih-Tzu Lu, Jin-Ming Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
Series:Nanomaterials
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/7/1731
Description
Summary:The specific energy of an aqueous carbon supercapacitor is generally small, resulting mainly from a narrow potential window of aqueous electrolytes. Here, we introduced agarose, an ecologically compatible polymer, as a novel binder to fabricate an activated carbon supercapacitor, enabling a wider potential window attributed to a high overpotential of the hydrogen-evolution reaction (HER) of agarose-bound activated carbons in sulfuric acid. Assembled symmetric aqueous cells can be galvanostatically cycled up to 1.8 V, attaining an enhanced energy density of 13.5 W h/kg (9.5 µW h/cm<sup>2</sup>) at 450 W/kg (315 µW/cm<sup>2</sup>). Furthermore, a great cycling behavior was obtained, with a 94.2% retention of capacitance after 10,000 cycles at 2 A/g. This work might guide the design of an alternative material for high-energy aqueous supercapacitors.
ISSN:2079-4991