Low-cost, large-scale, one-pot synthesis of C/Ni3(NO3)2(OH)4 composites for high performance supercapacitor

In this study, we report a series of carbon/nickel-based composites. The composites are prepared through a facile one-pot solution combustion method by using nickel nitrate hydrate (Ni(NO3)(2)center dot 6H(2)O) as an oxidizer and glucose (C6H12O6) as a fuel material. The phase, component and electrochemical capacitive behavior of the as-prepared samples are investigated. The component of the obtained composites could be simply controlled by changing the ratio of NO3-/C6H12O6. Novel C/Ni-3(NO3)(2)(OH)(4) composites are obtained at high molar ratio of NO3-/C6H12O6 (larger than 9) for the first time. The as-prepared C/Ni-3(NO3)(2)(OH)(4) composite shows battery-type behavior and exhibits a specific capacity of 630 C g(-1) (1260 F g(-1)) at the current density of 1 A g(-1), which is ca. 2-10 fold higher than those of C/NiO composite (414 C g(-1), 828 F g(-1)) and C/NiO/Ni composite (65 C g(-1), 129 F g(-1)). In addition, C/Ni-3(NO3)(2)(OH)(4) composite exhibits an excellent rate performance (448 C g(-1), 996 F g(-1) at 10 A g(-1)) and good cyclic stability. The results indicate that the C/Ni-3(NO3)(2)(OH)(4) composite is a potential electrode material for electrochemical supercapacitor. This work also suggests that the solution combustion process is promising for large-scale production of materials for supercapacitors.