Walnut shell-derived porous carbon integrated with Ni-MOF/SPANI composites for high-performance supercapacitor.

In this paper, novel hybrid nanomaterials constituting carbonized biomass materials derived from walnut shells and metal-organic framework (MOF) have been researched as a new class of renewable supercapacitor materials for electrochemical energy storage. One synthetic route is employed to grow Ni-MOF in the peripheries and channels of walnut shells derived carbon (WS), which had been carbonized previously by heat treatment in air at 850 °C to produce a highly porous network, and vulcanized polyaniline (SPANI) is used as a dummy plate preventing the agglomeration of MOFs and a wire connecting WS and MOFs, which easily improves the electron transfer and enhances the conductivity of the electrode material. The specific capacitance of the obtained WS@Ni-MOF composite is up to 4 times that of the biochar at the current density of 1 A g-1. The connection of SPANI also obviously accelerates the transfer of electrolyte ions. The resulting specific capacitance could reach 14 times of the biochar and exhibit high cycle stability (retention rate of 90.4% after 20000 cycles). In addition, the assembled asymmetrical supercapacitor (ASC) shows a high energy density of 34.79 Wh kg-1 at the power density of 824 W kg-1. This work provides a brilliant renewable candidate for the excellent energy storage device and a promising route design strategy for preparation of high performance and long life electrode materials. [Display omitted] • Design and fabrication of self-assembled Walnut shell-derived carbon and MOF composites. • WS@Ni-MOF/SPANI, as a new electrode material with sandwich structure, applied for supercapacitors for the first time. • The specific capacitance of WS@Ni-MOF/SPANI is greater than that of WS, Ni-MOF and SPANI. • Excellent cyclic stability of WS@Ni-MOF/SPANI (90.4%@20000). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]