Nitrogen and sulfur co-doped graphene aerogel for high performance supercapacitors

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Electrochemistry
• Energy Storage

Background:

• High energy and power density supercapacitors are crucial for modern energy storage.
• Developing advanced electrode materials is key to improving supercapacitor performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize nitrogen and sulfur co-doped graphene aerogels (N/S-GA) as high-performance electrode materials.
• To evaluate the electrochemical performance of N/S-GA in supercapacitors.

Main Methods:

• Graphene oxide was used as a precursor.
• 2-mercapto-1-methylimidazole served as both a reducing and N/S doping agent.
• Hierarchical porous structure characterization and electrochemical testing were performed.

Main Results:

• N/S-GA demonstrated a hierarchical porous structure facilitating ion transport.
• Specific capacitance reached 212 F g⁻¹ at 1 A g⁻¹ and 162 F g⁻¹ at 10 A g⁻¹.
• Supercapacitors achieved energy densities of 117 W h kg⁻¹ and power densities of 1.0 kW kg⁻¹ at 1 A g⁻¹.

Conclusions:

• N/S-GA exhibits excellent electrochemical performance for supercapacitors.
• The hierarchical porous structure and doping contribute to enhanced charge storage.
• N/S-GA is a promising material for high-performance energy storage devices.