Chemical synthesis and supercapacitive evaluation of polyaniline nanofibers (PANINFs)

The aim of the present work is the morphological evaluation of PANINFs synthesized by easy and economical Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption Reaction (SILAR) method by varying deposition cycles for supercapacitor application. The semi-crystalline nature is confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. From XRD analysis, it is observed that increasing deposition cycles caused decrement in the crystallite size. On the contrary micro-strain, dislocation density, and distortion parameter were increased with deposition cycles. The Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Raman analysis confirmed the formation of PANI. The surface morphological analysis reveals that the nanofibers appeared with greater interconnectivity and increased porosity with increasing deposition cycles. These observations are supported by an electrochemical analysis which demonstrated that the electrochemical performance of PANINFs is improved. The obtained highest specific capacitance (C_s) of PANINFs is 196 F/g in 1 M H₂SO₄ electrolyte at 0.5 mA/cm² current density with 17.46 Wh/kg and 181.81 W/kg energy and power density, respectively. The synthesis of PANINFs via a simple, cost-effective and eco-friendly chemical route, i.e., the SILAR method with enhanced supercapacitive properties promoting its applications in energy storage technology.