Electrochemical Energy Storage in Nitrogen/Metal-doped Carbon Aerogels Derived from Polyurea-crosslinked Alginate Aerogels

Porous carbons obtained from pyrolysis of biomass have been proved to be a great choice for energy storage applications, owing to the endless supply of precursors - hence low cost, and of course due to the significant advantages of carbon aerogels such as high specific surface area, good conductivity, and light weight. Most reports on energy storage devices that use carbon aerogels either employ energy intensive processes, such as freeze-drying, or rely on activation protocols. Therefore, it is significant to establish cost-effective and eco-friendly protocols, which will boost the competitiveness of such materials. Herein, we present a thorough electrochemical characterization, and we demonstrate the performance of some nitrogen/metal co-doped alginate-derived carbon aerogels in aqueous supercapacitors. Those carbon aerogels were synthesized by pyrolysis of polyurea-crosslinked alginate aerogels and exhibited excellent energy/power density as well as cycling stability, in comparison to analogous materials reported in the literature.

Automated summary

Porous carbons obtained from biomass pyrolysis are an excellent choice for energy storage applications due to their abundant precursors, low cost, and the advantages of carbon aerogels such as high specific surface area, good conductivity, and light weight. Establishing cost-effective and eco-friendly protocols is significant to enhance the competitiveness of these materials. In this study, nitrogen/metal co-doped alginate-derived carbon aerogels were thoroughly characterized and showed excellent energy/power density and cycling stability in aqueous supercapacitors, surpassing previous reports.