Controllable Preparation of Eucommia Wood-Derived Mesoporous Activated Carbon as Electrode Materials for Supercapacitors

Activated carbons (ACs) for supercapacitors were synthesized from Eucommia ulmoides Oliver (EUO) wood by H3PO4 with systemic activation processes. The target structure of ACs could be prepared by adjusting the technological parameters. As the H3PO4 concentration was 25%, the mass ratio of feedstocks to activator was 1:4, the activation time was 6 h, and the activation temperature was 400 degrees C, the obtained AC revealed a high specific surface area (2033.87 m(2)center dot g(-1)) and well-developed mesoporous (the rate of mesoporous was 96.4%) with the best economic feasibility. Besides, it possessed excellent electrochemical performance: the maximum specific capacitance reached up to 252 F center dot g(-1), the charging and discharging period was 3098.2 s at 0.2 A center dot g(-1), and the retention rate of specific capacitance reached 92.3% after 10,000 cycles. This low temperature and convenience technology provide a valuable reference for synthesizing the EUO-based ACs, making high-value utilization on the EUO branches, and owning a broad application prospect in supercapacitors.

Automated summary

Activated carbons (ACs) for supercapacitors were synthesized from Eucommia ulmoides Oliver (EUO) wood using phosphoric acid (H3PO4) and systematic activation processes. By adjusting the technological parameters, ACs with a high specific surface area (2033.87 m(2)center dot g(-1)) and well-developed mesoporous structure (96.4% rate of mesoporous) were obtained. The synthesized ACs exhibited excellent electrochemical performance, with a maximum specific capacitance of 252 F center dot g(-1), a charging and discharging period of 3098.2 s at 0.2 A center dot g(-1), and a retention rate of 92.3% after 10,000 cycles. This low temperature and convenient synthesis method provides valuable insights for the high-value utilization of EUO branches and holds great potential for application in supercapacitors.