Activated porous carbon derived from ethynyl phenyl azo phenol-biphenylene resin for high-performance supercapacitor

Activated porous carbon that employed as supercapacitor electrode was synthesized through a controlled carbonization–activation process of Ethynyl phenyl azo phenol-biphenylene resin. Nitrogen adsorption test, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and elemental analysis were used to characterize the microstructure and microtopography of the activated porous carbon. As a result, the porous carbon treated with CO₂-2h showed a high specific surface area of 2152.48 m²/g and a high specific capacitance of about 62.33 F/g at a current density of 0.1 A /g, which indicates the promising potential of as-prepared porous carbon for solid symmetric supercapacitor. The porous carbon treated with CO₂-2h exhibited a high specific capacitance of 62.33 F/g at 0.1 A/g, and good rate capability of 82.16% retention from 0.1 to 2 A/g. It showed that activated porous carbon can obtain higher specific surface area and contribute to desirable microstructure and electrode materials with excellent electrochemical performance. The excellent energy storage ability of the activated porous carbon is ascribed to the high conductivity and high storage ability of amorphous carbon with variable pore size and distribution. The high specific capacitance and long cycle stability makes it an anticipative candidate to attain the urge for the establishment of new functional materials for energy storage.