Three-dimensional graphene oxide/polypyrrole composite electrodes fabricated by one-step electrodeposition for high performance supercapacitors

By Cao, Jianyun; Wang, Yaming; Chen, Junchen; Li, Xiaohong; Walsh, Frank C.; Ouyang, Jia-Hu; Jia, Dechang & Zhou, Yu
Published in J. Mater. Chem. A The Royal Society of Chemistry 2015

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) graphene oxide/polypyrrole (GO/PPy) composite electrodes have been fabricated via one-step electrochemical co-deposition in an aqueous solution containing pyrrole monomers, GO and LiClO?. The concentration of GO in the solution plays an important role in controlling the morphologies of the as-deposited GO/PPy composites, and a relatively low concentration of 0.1 mg mL-1 is favorable for the formation of a 3D interconnected structure. The unique 3D interconnected structure ensures fast diffusion of electrolyte ions through the electrode. As a result, the GO/PPy composite electrode with a mass loading of 0.26 mg cm-2 exhibits the highest specific capacitance of 481.1 F g-1, while the electrode with a larger mass loading of 1.02 mg cm-2 delivers the best area capacitance of 387.6 mF cm-2, at a current density of 0.2 mA cm-2. Moreover, the GO/PPy composite electrodes exhibit good rate capability with capacitance retentions over 80% when the current density load increases from 0.2 to 10 mA cm-2. Both the aqueous and solid-state supercapacitors based on GO/PPy composite electrodes show excellent capacitive properties with good cycling stability, indicating their suitability for applications in energy storage and management.

Read Article » Back