Widely improved supercapacitance properties of zirconium-cobalt ferrite nanoparticles by N-doped graphene oxide as an electrode in supercapacitor

Recently, supercapacitors have garnered considerable attention as promising energy storage devices owing to their unique characteristics. Ferrites are commonly recognized as an innovative category of porous materials that present prominent features, including substantial pore volume, high chemical stability, and large specific surface area, contingent upon the precise selection of components. In this research, we fabricated the zirconium ferrite (ZrFe2O4), cobalt ferrite (CoFe2O4), zirconium cobalt ferrite (ZrCoFe2O4), and nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxide (NRGO) combination with ZrCoFe2O4 (ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO). ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO nanocomposite is constructed by a co-precipitation route as an electrode material for the application of supercapacitors devices. The formation of samples was specified by several techniques like transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), fourier transformation infrared (FTIR), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) spectra. The results of structural characterization show that the pore diameter of NRGO is 80.259 nm, CoFe2O4 is 24.301 nm, ZrFe2O4 is 3.1651 nm, ZrCoFe2O4 is 62.617 nm, and ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO is 21.112 nm. The charge storage mechanism and electrochemical activity of as-prepared materials were appraised using the galvanostatic charge/discharge (GCD), cyclic voltammogram (CV) methods, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) test. The ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO electrode demonstrated superb electrochemical activity with a specific capacitance (SC) of 307 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1. According to the stability examination, it was found that the maintenance of the initial capacity stood at approximately 97 % after 5000 cycles, indicating notably good electrochemical stability whereas shown lowest resistance in electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. A constructed asymmetric supercapacitor device (ASD) that utilized hybrid ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO//NRGO electrodes indicated a SC of 137 F g-1 at 1 A g-1, energy density of 42.7 Wh kg -1, and power density of 618.5 W kg -1. These findings indicate that the ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO//NRGO composite material has the capability to be employed as unique electrode material in supercapacitor applications to produce high-efficiency and reliable energy storage devices.

Automated summary

This research introduces a composite material, ZrCoFe2O4/NRGO, made by combining zirconium ferrite, cobalt ferrite, zirconium cobalt ferrite, and nitrogen-doped reduced graphene oxide. The material shows excellent electrochemical activity and stability, making it a potential electrode material for high-efficiency and reliable energy storage devices in supercapacitor applications.