Nanoporous CuS nano-hollow spheres as advanced material for high-performance supercapacitors

Due to unique advantages, the development of high-performance supercapacitors has stimulated a great deal of scientific research over the past decade. The electrochemical performance of a supercapacitor is strongly affected by the surface and structural properties of its electrode materials. Herein, we report a facile synthesis of high-performance supercapacitor electrode material based on CuS nano-hollow spheres with nanoporous structures, large specific surface area (97 m(2) g(-1)) and nanoscale shell thickness (<20 nm). This interesting electrode structure plays a key role in providing more active sites for electrochemical reactions, short ion and electron diffusion pathways and facilitated ion transport. The CuS nano-hollow spheres electrode exhibits excellent electrochemical performance including a maximum specific capacitance of 948 F g(-1) at 1 A g(-1), significant rate capability of 46% capacitance retention at a high current density of 50 A g(-1), and outstanding long-term cycling stability at various current densities. This work not only demonstrates the promising potential of the CuS-NHS electrodes for application in high-performance supercapacitors, but also sheds a new light on the metal sulfides design philosophy. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.