Three-dimensional honeycomb-like hierarchically structured carbon for high-performance supercapacitors derived from high-ash-content sewage sludge

• Published in: Journal of materials chemistry. A, Materials for energy and sustainability Vol. 3; no. 29; pp. 15225 - 15234
• Main Authors: Feng, Haobin, Zheng, Mingtao, Dong, Hanwu, Xiao, Yong, Hu, Hang, Sun, Zhongxin, Long, Chao, Cai, Yijin, Zhao, Xiao, Zhang, Haoran, Lei, Bingfu, Liu, Yingliang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01.01.2015
• Subjects: Capacitance; Capacitors; Carbon; Electrode materials; Porosity; Sewage sludge; Supercapacitors; Three dimensional
• ISSN: 2050-7488; 2050-7496
• DOI: 10.1039/c5ta03217b

In this work, we demonstrate for the first time that three-dimensional honeycomb-like hierarchically structured carbon (HSC) can be prepared by using high-ash-content sewage sludge as a carbon precursor. The fly-silicon process plays a crucial role in the formation of honeycomb-like hierarchical structures. The as-resulted HSC exhibits novel honeycomb-like frameworks, high specific surface area (2839 m super(2) g super(-1)), large pore volume (2.65 cm super(3) g super(-1)), interconnected hierarchical porosity, and excellent electrochemical performance. The high specific capacitance of 379 F g super(-1) as well as excellent rate capability and outstanding cycling stability (over 90% capacitance retention after 20 000 cycles even at a high current density of 20 A g super(-1)), makes it suitable for high-performance supercapacitor electrode materials. The assembled HSC//HSC symmetric supercapacitor presents enhanced supercapacitive behavior with a high energy density of 30.5 W h kg super(-1) in aqueous solution. This strategy provides an effective method to develop high-performance electrode materials derived from other high-ash-content biomass wastes for supercapacitors.