NanoCeO2/conducting polymer based composite electrodes for high performance supercapacitor

Abstract

Abstract The present research paper reports the structural, morphological and electrochemical properties of cerium oxide doped polythiophene nanocomposite. Polythiophene was first polymerized using the chemical oxidation polymerization method and further, it was mixed with an equal amount of cerium oxide (CeO2) nanoparticles by mechanical mixing. The initially generated polythiophene sample exhibited an amorphous character according to X-ray diffraction investigation, however the PTh–nCeO2 polymer nanocomposite displayed good crystallinity. The vibration bands of the PTh and PTh–nCeO2 polymer nanocomposites were further examined using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopic studies. The morphology and elemental composition of the prepared samples were investigated using scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The electrochemical performance of PTh and PTh–nCeO2 polymer nanocomposite was studied by cyclic voltammetry, Galvanostatic charge–discharge and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. The PTh–nCeO2 polymer nanocomposites demonstrated a high specific capacitance of 161 F g−1 at a current density of 1 A g−1 among the produced samples. The Nyquist plot (low-frequency area) and Bode plot (phase angle) electrochemical impedance tests revealed excellent capacitive performance. The PTh–nCeO2 polymer nanocomposites may be a good option for high-performance super capacitors, according to the findings.