Polyaniline- and poly(ethylenedioxythiophene)-cellulose nanocomposite electrodes for supercapacitors

Liew, Soon Yee; Thielemans, Wim; Walsh, Darren A.

Abstract

The formation and characterisation of films of polyaniline (PANI) and poly(ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) containing cellulose nanocrystals (CNXLs) from cotton are described. PANI/CNXL films were electrodeposited from a solution containing CNXLs, HCl and aniline, while PEDOT/CNXL films were electrodeposited from a solution containing CNXLs, lithium perchlorate and ethylenedioxythiophene. In each case, incorporation of CNXLs into the electrodepositing polymer film led to the formation of a porous polymer/CNXL nanocomposite structure. The films were characterised using scanning electron microscopy, cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and galvanostatic charge-discharge analysis. The specific capacitances of the nanocomposite materials were higher than those of the CNXL-free counterparts (488 F/g for PANI/CNXL; 358 F/g for PANI; 69 F/g for PEDOT/CNXL; 58 F/g for PEDOT). The durability of the PANI/CNXL film under potential cycling was slightly better than that of the CNXL-free PANI, while the PEDOT film was slightly more durable than the PEDOT/CNXL film. Using electrodeposition, it was possible to form thick PANI/CNXL films, with total electrode capacitances of 2.07 F farads per squared cm (and corresponding specific capacitances of 440 F/g), demonstrating that this particular nanocomposite may be promising for the construction of high performance supercapacitors.

Citation

Liew, S. Y., Thielemans, W., & Walsh, D. A. (2014). Polyaniline- and poly(ethylenedioxythiophene)-cellulose nanocomposite electrodes for supercapacitors. Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry, 18(12), https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-014-2669-7

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: Nov 9, 2014
• Deposit Date: Sep 22, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 22, 2015
• Journal: Journal of Solid State Electrochemistry
• Print ISSN: 1432-8488
• Electronic ISSN: 1433-0768
• Publisher: Springer Verlag
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 18
• Issue: 12
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10008-014-2669-7
• Keywords: Supercapacitor; Conducting polymer; Capacitance; Electrochemical impedance; Spectroscopy; Cyclic voltammetry; Porous materials
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/739840
• Publisher URL: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10008-014-2669-7#page-1
• Additional Information: The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10008-014-2669-7