Hydrothermal Synthesis of CuO/RuO2/MWCNT Nanocomposites with Morphological Variants for High Efficient Supercapacitors

In this study, we develop the optimum composition of copper oxide/ruthenium oxide and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CuO/RuO2/MWCNTs) ternary nanocomposite via a hydrothermal method as an efficient electrode material for supercapacitor applications. The ratio between CuO and RuO2 varied to improve the electrochemical performance of the electrode. The synthesized nanocomposites are analyzed by high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM), thermo gravimetric analyzer (TGA) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Furthermore, the elemental composition is analyzed by energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy and the specific capacitance was analyzed by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD) methods. The electrochemical investigations is conducted in a three-electrode system and the sample is attached on a stainless steel plate as the working electrode; platinum wire works as the counter electrode and Ag/AgCl electrode as the reference electrode, adopting 3 M (NH4)(2)SO4 as the electrolyte. The resultant of CuO/RuO2/MWCNT nanocomposite with 7 wt% Cu and 20 wt% Ru was found to perform the highest specific capacitance of 461.59 F/g in a current density of 1 A/g.

Automated summary

In this study, a ternary nanocomposite consisting of copper oxide/ruthenium oxide and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CuO/RuO2/MWCNTs) was synthesized using a hydrothermal method for supercapacitor electrode applications. Different ratios of CuO and RuO2 were used to improve the electrochemical performance of the electrode. The synthesized nanocomposites were characterized using various techniques such as scanning electron microscopy, thermo gravimetric analysis, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The specific capacitance of the nanocomposite with 7 wt% Cu and 20 wt% Ru was found to be the highest.