Polyaniline coated MOF-derived Mn2O3 nanorods for efficient hybrid capacitive deionization

Mn-based oxides are efficient pseudocapacitive electrode materials and have been investigated for capacitive deionization (CDI). However, their poor conductivity seriously affects their desalination performance. In this work, polyaniline coated Mn(2)O(3 & nbsp;)nanorods (PANI/Mn2O3) are synthesized by oxidizing a Mn-based metal organic framework (MOF) and subsequent in-situ chemical polymerization. The polyaniline not only acts as a conductive network for faradaic reactions of Mn2O3, but also enhances the desalination rate. PANI/Mn2O3 has a specific capacitance of 87 F g(-1) (at 1 A g(-1)), superior to that of Mn(2)O(3 & nbsp;)nanorod (52 F g(-1) at 1 A g(-1)). The hybrid CDI cell constructed with a PANI/Mn(2)O(3 & nbsp;)cathode and an active carbon anode shows a high desalination capacity of 21.6 mg g(-1), superior recyclability with only 11.3% desalination capacity decay after 30 desalination cycles and fast desalination rate of 2.2 mg g(-1) min(-1). PANI/Mn(2)O(3 & nbsp;)is a potential candidate for high performance CDI applications.

Automated summary

In this study, the conductivity and desalination performance of capacitive deionization (CDI) materials were improved by coating polyaniline on the surface of Mn(2)O(3) nanorods, showing potential applications.