Enhanced electrochemical performance of monoclinic WO3 thin film with redox additive aqueous electrolyte

To achieve the highest electrochemical performance for supercapacitor, it is very essential to find out a suitable pair of an active electrode material and an electrolyte. In the present work, a simple approach is employed to enhance the supercapacitor performance of WO3 thin film. The WO3 thin film is prepared by a simple and cost effective chemical bath deposition method and its electrochemical performance is tested in conventional (H2SO4) and redox additive [H2SO4 + hydroquinone (HQ)] electrolytes. Two-fold increment in electrochemical performance for WO3 thin film is observed in redox additive aqueous electrolyte compared to conventional electrolyte. WO3 thin film showed maximum specific capacitance of 725 Fg(-1), energy density of 25.18 Wh kg(-1) at current density of 7 mA cm(-2) with better cycling stability in redox electrolyte. This strategy provides the versatile way for designing the high performance energy storage devices. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.