Sodium Dodecylbenzene Sulfonate Assisted Electrodeposition of MnO2@C Electrode for High Performance Supercapacitor

Abstract

In this work, MnO2&SDBS electrodes with nano-honeycomb morphology were prepared by ultrasound-assisted electrochemical deposition using sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS) as a surfactant agent. The effect and mechanism of SDBS on the morphology of MnO2 nanomaterials during the preparation of MnO2 by electrochemical anodic oxidation was systematically investigated by varying the content of SDBS in the precursor solution. When the SDBS concentration is 2 g · l−1, the resulting electrode has the best electrochemical performance, and the specific capacitance is up to 407 F · g−1 at the current density of 1000 mA · g−1. To further enhance its performance, a carbon coating layer was deposited on the surface of the electrode using a method similar to chemical vapor deposition. Finally, the MnO2&SDBS@C electrode with a three-dimensional net-to-film composite structure with a high specific surface area, hierarchical structure and interconnect with nickel foam supports were obtained. The electrode has excellent electrochemical performance, and the specific capacitance is still up to 289 F · g−1 at a high current density of 5000 mA · g−1. Furthermore, the specific capacitance of the electrode was maintained at 83.9% after 500 cycles of charging and discharging at a current density of 2000 Am·g−1.