Issue 24, 2013

Amorphous V–O–C composite nanofibers electrospun from solution precursors as binder- and conductive additive-free electrodes for supercapacitors with outstanding performance

Abstract

Flexible V–O–C composite nanofibers were fabricated from solution precursors via electrospinning and were investigated as free-standing and additive-free film electrodes for supercapacitors. Specifically, composite nanofibers (V0, V5, V10 and V20) with different vanadyl acetylacetonate (VO(acac)2) contents of 0, 5, 10 and 20 wt% with respect to polyacrylonitrile (PAN) were prepared. The composite nanofibers were comparatively studied using XRD, Raman spectroscopy, XPS, N2 adsorption–desorption, FE-SEM, TEM and S-TEM. The vanadium element was found to be well-dispersed in the carbon nanofibers, free from the formation of an aggregated crystalline phase, even in the case of V20. A specific surface area of 587.9 m2 g−1 was reached for V10 after calcination, which is approximately twice that of the vanadium-free carbon nanofibers (V0, 300.9 m2 g−1). To perform as an electrode for supercapacitors in an aqueous electrolyte, the V10 film delivered a specific capacitance of 463 F g−1 at 1 A g−1. V10 was also able to retain a specific capacitance of 380 F g−1, even at a current density of 10 A g−1. Additionally, very stable cycling stability was achieved, maintaining an outstanding specific capacitance of 400 F g−1 at 5 A g−1 after charge–discharge cycling 5000 times. Thus, V–O–C composite nanofibers are highly attractive electrode materials for flexible, high-power, thin film energy storage devices and applications.

Graphical abstract: Amorphous V–O–C composite nanofibers electrospun from solution precursors as binder- and conductive additive-free electrodes for supercapacitors with outstanding performance

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
23 Aug 2013
Accepted
10 Oct 2013
First published
14 Oct 2013

Nanoscale, 2013,5, 12589-12597

Amorphous V–O–C composite nanofibers electrospun from solution precursors as binder- and conductive additive-free electrodes for supercapacitors with outstanding performance

X. Chen, B. Zhao, Y. Cai, M. O. Tadé and Z. Shao, Nanoscale, 2013, 5, 12589 DOI: 10.1039/C3NR04484J

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