Facile solvothermal synthesis of NiFe2O4 nanoparticles for high-performance supercapacitor applications

• Published in: Frontiers of materials science Vol. 14; no. 2; pp. 120 - 132
• Main Authors: Sethi, Meenaketan, Shenoy, U. Sandhya, Muthu, Selvakumar, Bhat, D. Krishna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Beijing Higher Education Press 01.06.2020; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Capacitance; Chemistry and Materials Science; Crystal structure; Crystallinity; Current density; Electrochemical analysis; Electrodes; Materials Science; Morphology; Nanoparticles; Nickel ferrites; Research Article; Solid phases; Supercapacitors; Synthesis; specific capacitance; solvothermal method; nanoparticle; BET surface area; NiFe; O; supercapacitor
• ISSN: 2095-025X; 2095-0268
• DOI: 10.1007/s11706-020-0499-3

We report a green and facile approach for the synthesis of NiFe 2 O 4 (NF) nanoparticles with good crystallinity. The prepared materials are studied by various techniques in order to know their phase structure, crystallinity, morphology and elemental state. The BET analysis revealed a high surface area of 80.0 m 2 ·g −1 for NF possessing a high pore volume of 0.54 cm 3 ·g −1 , also contributing to the amelioration of the electrochemical performance. The NF sample is studied for its application in supercapacitors in an aqueous 2 mol·L −1 KOH electrolyte. Electrochemical properties are studied both in the three-electrode method and in a symmetrical supercapacitor cell. Results show a high specific capacitance of 478.0 F·g −1 from the CV curve at an applied scan rate of 5 mV·s −1 and 368.0 F·g −1 from the GCD analysis at a current density of 1 A·g −1 for the NF electrode. Further, the material exhibited an 88% retention of its specific capacitance after continuous 10000 cycles at a higher applied current density of 8 A·g −1 . These encouraging properties of NF nanoparticles suggest the practical applicability in high-performance supercapacitors.