Carbon aerogels as electrode material for electrical double layer supercapacitors—Synthesis and properties

Abstract This paper constitutes a description of technological research the aim of which was to design a symmetric supercapacitor dedicated for the system of quality of electrical energy improvement (supply interruption, voltage dip). The main task was to use the carbon aerogel technology as the efficient method for production of electrode material with desirable properties. Carbon aerogels were prepared by carbonization of resorcinol–formaldehyde (RF) polymer gels. RF-gels were synthesized by curing polycondensation and by the inverse emulsion polymerization of resorcinol with formaldehyde, followed by microwave drying. The morphostructural characteristics of the carbon aerogels were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and the N 2 adsorption (BET method). The electrochemical properties were characterized by means of cycle voltammetry, galvanostatic charging/discharging, and self-discharge.