Effect of Aniline Concentration on the Morphology and Electrochemical Properties of DBSA-Doped Polyaniline for Flexible Supercapacitor Electrode Materials

Polyaniline as a supercapacitor electrode material has attracted great research interest due to its advantages, especially including high pseudocapacitance. Dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid-doped polyaniline materials are prepared at different aniline concentrations and characterized by various measurements. The effect of the aniline concentration on the morphology, chemical structure, crystallinity, and electrochemical properties is thoroughly investigated. Based on the morphology alteration with the increase of aniline concentration, the formation mechanism of dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid-doped polyaniline microstructure is proposed. Dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid-doped polyaniline with an aniline concentration of 0.5 mol/L exhibits the superior electrochemical properties with a specific capacitance of 146 F/g, low charge transport resistance of 1.27 Ω, and steep slope in the low frequency region. In combination with its solubility, dodecylbenzenesulfonic acid-doped polyaniline is an excellent candidate for the electrode materials of a flexible supercapacitor.