Fabrication of high-performance supercapacitor using date leaves-derived submicron/nanocarbon

Abstract

Offering a suitable and low-cost electrode material is one of the most important and challenging demands in supercapacitor research. In this aspect, carbon prepared from biomass by simply pyrolysis and ball milling could be one ideal electrode material for supercapacitor applications. Hence, a novel type of submicron/nanocarbon was prepared from date leaves by simple pyrolysis and ball milling. After morphological and chemical characterizations, the prepared carbon was used as the electrode material upon immobilizing on a steel substrate (current collector) to fabricate a high-performance symmetric supercapacitor. The fabricated supercapacitor took advantage of the carbon's electric double layer capacitance behaviour and pseudocapacitance behaviour of heteroatoms present in the carbon. The developed supercapacitor device provides significant charging/discharging using the optimum electrolyte (0.1 M sulfuric acid). That manifested with a high specific capacitance of (∼107 F/g) and maintained above 92% of its initial capacitance after 1000 charge/discharge cycles. Furthermore, the supercapacitor provides an energy density of ∼10 Wh/Kg at a power density of ∼200 W/Kg. This work provides an inexpensive, high-performance supercapacitor that depends on the biomass (date palm leaves) and nominates it as a capable candidate for mass-product in the future.

Keywords

• Date leaves-derived carbon
• Pyrolysis
• Ball-milling
• Energy storage
• Supercapacitor