Facile Route for the Preparation of Functionalized Reduced Graphene Oxide/Polyaniline Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance

Abstract

A functionalized reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline (FRGO/PANI) composite is fabricated with a facile and practical approach, including the reduction and functionalization of graphene oxide (GO) and in situ polymerization of polyaniline (PANI) on the surface of functionalized reduced graphene oxide (FRGO). Amino groups are introduced to the surface of FRGO in the solvothermal reduction process. The composite exhibits a specific capacitance of 421 F g−1 at 0.6 A g−1, showing an outstanding improvement than pure PANI (298 F g−1) and FRGO (113 F g−1). Meanwhile, the capacitance retention for FRGO/PANI composite after 800 cycles is 84.6%, which is superior to pure PANI of 50.8%. The synergistic effect between FRGO and PANI makes a great contribution to the enrichment of electrochemical performance. The consequence shows that FRGO/PANI composite synthesized in this way has promising feasibility for applications in high-performance supercapacitor electrode materials.