Advanced Nanocomposite Arabic Gum Polyacrylic Acid Hydrogels for Flexible Supercapacitors

In this work,the fabrication and characterization of the nanocomposite hydrogel,as a solid electrode in electro-chemical cell and gel electrolyte material using Indium titanium oxide/polyethylene terephthalate(ITO/PET)flex-ible substrate for double-layer supercapacitors have been reported.The nanocomposite hydrogel composed of Arabic gum(AG),Acrylic acid(AA),reduced graphene oxide(RGO),and silver nanoparticles(AgNPs)was fab-ricated via a physical cross-linked polymerization reaction,in which the ascorbic acid was used as a reducing agent to generate AgNPs and to convert Graphene oxide(GO)to RGO during the polymerization reaction.The morphology and structural characteristics of nanocomposite hydrogel were investigated using atomic force microscopy(AFM),scanning electron microscope(SEM),Fourier transfer infrared(FTIR),and X-rayfluores-cence(XRF).Additionally,the effect of RGO and AgNPs on hydrogel stability was assessed through Thermogra-vimetric analysis(TGA)and differential scanning calorimetry(DSC),while its mechanical properties were studied using the nanoindentation test.Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS),and cyclic voltammetry(CV)were also conducted to study the electrochemical properties of the prepared hydrogel.The effects of AgNPs,RGO,and water content were all considered in the study of supercapacitor performance.The microstructural tests showed that the nanocomposite hydrogel has a relatively high swelling rate,which has a crucial effect on the capa-citance.Furthermore,the effects of increasing AgNP concentration and water content in the hydrogel matrix showed a significant improvement in its electrochemical performance,compared with that for Arabic gum poly acrylic acid(AGPAA)hydrogel itself,were the specific capacitance exhibited a significant enhancement,convert-ing from a low value to a substantially higher capacitance value.Moreover,when the nanocomposite hydrogel was used as the working electrode in an electrochemical cell with a hydrochloric acid(HCl)electrolyte solution,it exhibited good electrode performance.Additionally,using(ITO/PET)as aflexible substrate for nanocomposite hydrogel shows an improvement in their suitability for supercapacitor applications.Therefore,it is suggested that the fabricated hydrogel supercapacitor has potential applications in thefield of renewable and clean energy harvesting.

Flexible Three-Dimensional Graphene Hydrogels with Superior Conductivity and Excellent Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes

Three-dimensional porous graphene hydrogels have been prepared by a green and facile but very efficient ap- proach using glucose as an assistant. Based on a one-step hydrothermal reaction with optimal experimental condi- tions such as the reaction time and temperature, the graphene hydrogels exhibit a superior electrical conductivity （95.3 S/m） and can be used as supercapacitor electrode without any binder or conducting additives but showing a high specific capacitance of 384.6 F/g at a current density of 1 A/g. The results show that addition of glucose can not only greatly decrease the reaction temperature but also shorten the reaction time. The superior performance of the three-dimensional porous graphene hydrogels as electrode for supercapacitor suggests its promising potentials in the field of energy storage devices.

Hydrothermal Self-assembly Synthesis of Mn3O4Reduced Graphene Oxide Hydrogel and Its High Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitors

In the present work Mn3O4/reduced graphene oxide hydrogel （Mn3O4-rGOH） with three dimensional （3D） networks was fabricated by a hydrothermal self-assembly route. The morphology, composition, and microstructure of the as-obtained samples were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction （XRD）, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）, thermogravimetry analysis （TG）, atomic absorption spectrometry （AAS）, field emission scanning electron microscopy （FESEM） and transmission electron microscope （TEM）. Moreover, the electrochemical behaviors were evaluated by cyclic voltammogram （CV）, galvanostatic charge-discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS）. The test results indicated that the hydrogel with 6.9% Mn3O4 achieved specific capacitance of 148 F.g^-1 at a specific current of 1 A.g^-1, and showed excellent cycling stabilily with no decay after 1200 cycles. In addition, its specific capacitance could retain 70% even at 20 A.g^- 1 in comparison with that at 1 A.g ^-1 and the operating window was up to 1.8 V in a neutral electrolyte.