Facile Synthesis of Functionalized Porous Carbon by Direct Pyrolysis of Anacardium occidentale Nut-Skin Waste and Its Utilization towards Supercapacitors

Abstract

Preparing electrode materials plays an essential role in the fabrication of high-performance supercapacitors. In general, heteroatom doping in carbon-based electrode materials enhances the electrochemical properties. Herein, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur co-doped porous carbon (PC) materials were prepared by direct pyrolysis of Anacardium occidentale (AO) nut-skin waste for high-performance supercapacitor applications. The as-prepared AO-PC material possessed interconnected micropore/mesopore structures and exhibited a high specific surface area of 615 m2 g−1. The Raman spectrum revealed a moderate degree of graphitization of AO-PC materials. These superior properties of the as-prepared AO-PC material help to deliver high specific capacitance. After fabricating the working electrode, the electrochemical performances including cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge–discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements were conducted in 1 M H2SO4 aqueous solution using a three-electrode configuration for supercapacitor applications. The AO-PC material delivered a high specific capacitance of 193 F g−1 at a current density of 0.5 A g−1. The AO-PC material demonstrated <97% capacitance retention even after 10,000 cycles of charge–discharge at the current density of 5 A g−1. All the above outcomes confirmed that the as-prepared AO-PC from AO nut-skin waste via simple pyrolysis is an ideal electrode material for fabricating high-performance supercapacitors. Moreover, this work provides a cost-effective and environmentally friendly strategy for adding value to biomass waste by a simple pyrolysis route.