Use of Few-Layer Graphene Synthesized under Conditions of Self-Propagating High-Temperature Synthesis for Supercapacitors Applications

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 13; no. 16; p. 2368
• Main Authors: Vozniakovskii, Alexey, Smirnova, Evgenia, Apraksin, Rostislav, Kidalov, Sergey, Voznyakovskii, Alexander
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 01.08.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Activated carbon; Alternative energy sources; Analysis; Atoms & subatomic particles; Biopolymers; Capacitance; Chemical synthesis; Chemical vapor deposition; Electrodes; Electrolytes; Energy consumption; Energy storage; few-layer graphene; Graphene; Graphite; Identification and classification; Lignin; Methods; Properties; Renewable resources; Self propagating high temperature synthesis; Supercapacitors; Sustainable materials; Ultracapacitors; United Kingdom; Russia; United Kingdom > UK; St Petersburg Russia; United States > US; Wales
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano13162368

Graphene nanostructures (GNSs) are among the most promising materials for producing supercapacitors. However, GNSs are still not used in creating supercapacitors due to the impossibility of obtaining large volumes of high-quality material at an acceptable cost. In our previous works, we have shown the possibility of synthesizing large volumes of few-layer graphene (FLG, the number of layers is not more than five) from cyclic biopolymers under conditions of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). Using the SHS process makes it possible to synthesize large volumes of FLG without Stone–Wales defects. This work is devoted to the study of the possibility of using FLG synthesized under the conditions of the SHS process in the creation of supercapacitors. It was found that the synthesized FLG makes it possible to obtain better results than using classical materials, namely activated carbon (AC). It was found that the sample based on FLG had a higher specific capacitance of 65 F × g−1 compared to the sample from AC, the specific capacitance of which was 35 F × g−1; for a speed of 5 mV × s−1, these values were170 and 64 F × g−1, respectively. The drop in capacitance over 1000 cycles was 4%, indicating a sufficiently high FLG stability, allowing us to consider FLG as a prospective material for use in supercapacitors.