Collaboratively intercalated 1D/3D carbon nanoarchitectures in rGO-based aerogel for supercapacitor electrodes with superior capacitance retention

Reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-based aerogels with multidimensional structures have shown enormous potential for electrodes in supercapacitors. Currently, the interlayer stacking of rGO largely limits their capacitance performance and leads to poor structural stability. Herein, the multidimensional all-carbon aerogel of helical carbon nanocoils (CNCs)/rGO/carbon nanofibers (CNFs) has been synthesized by hydrothermal self-assembly and in-situ chemical vapor deposition (CVD). In this ternary electrode, three-dimensional (3D) CNCs serve as the inner skeleton, which facilitates the construction of 3D porous architectures and reinforces the structural stability. The intercalated CNCs prevents the stacking of rGO and effectively enlarges the spaces between rGO. Moreover, the uniform growth of one-dimensional CNFs improves the specific surface area and electrical conductivity. Due to the synergistic effect and hierarchical assembly of these components, the CNCs/rGO/CNFs electrode not only exhibits a high areal capacitance of 1581.7 mF cm-2 at 0.5 mA cm-2 in a 6 M KOH electrolyte but also shows excellent cycling durability with 108.1% capacitance retention over 30,000 cycles. This work provides inspiration and guidance for the design of multidimensional electrode materials, which has huge application potential in future energy storage devices.

Automated summary

In this study, a multidimensional all-carbon aerogel electrode composed of helical carbon nanocoils (CNCs), reduced graphene oxide (rGO), and carbon nanofibers (CNFs) was synthesized. The intercalated CNCs and the growth of CNFs enhanced the capacitance performance and cycling durability of the electrode.