Enhanced Supercapacitor and Cycle-Life Performance: Self-Supported Nanohybrid Electrodes of Hydrothermally Grown MnO2 Nanorods on Carbon Nanotubes in Neutral Electrolyte

Abstract

Efficient and sustainable energy storage remains a critical challenge in the advancement of energy technologies. This study presents the fabrication and electrochemical evaluation of a self-supporting electrode material composed of MnO2 nanorods grown directly on a carbon paper and carbon nanotube (CNT) substrate using a hydrothermal method. The resulting CNT/MnO2 electrodes exhibit a unique structural architecture with a high surface area and a three-dimensional hierarchical arrangement, contributing to a substantial electrochemical surface area. Electrochemical testing reveals remarkable performance characteristics, including a specific capacitance of up to 316.5 F/g, which is 11 times greater than that of conventional CP/MnO2 electrodes. Moreover, the CNT/MnO2 electrodes demonstrate outstanding retention capacity, exhibiting a remarkable 165% increase over 10,000 cycles. Symmetric supercapacitor devices utilizing CNT/MnO2 electrodes maintain a large voltage window of 3 V and a specific capacitance as high as 200 F/g. These results underscore the potential of free-standing CNT/MnO2 electrodes to advance the development of high-performance supercapacitors, which can be crucial for efficient and sustainable energy storage solutions in various industrial and manufacturing applications.