A novel ternary Fe3O4@Fc-GO/PANI nanocomposite for outstanding supercapacitor performance

Abstract This work introduced a novel ternary electrode material (Fe3O4@Fc1-GO/PANI2:1) for battery-type supercapacitor applications. This high performance electrode material was designed and synthesized via simple processes that involves a simple co-precipitation of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs), surface modification of MNPs with ferrocene (Fc) moieties through hydrogen-bonded interaction, and preparation of nanohybrids and nanocomposites via physical mixing strategy. Different appropriate structural analyses were then applied for characterization of the synthesized materials. The supercapacitor properties of the materials were investigated by means of cyclic voltammetry (CV),galvanostatic charge-discharge (GCD), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), tests. After electrochemical evaluations, the Fe3O4@Fc1-GO/PANI2:1nanocomposite was selected as optimal combination. This nanocomposite shows a 640mAh g−1 at 1 A g−1. Also, the selected nanocomposite was exhibited 86.68 % retention of initial capacity after 5000 CV cycles. Finally, this ternary nanocomposite was adopted for symmetric two-electrode system fabrication. The Fe3O4@Fc1-GO/PANI2:1-based symmetric cell delivered a high energy density of 106.2 Wh Kg−1 and a high power density of 6657 W Kg−1. These excellent electrochemical performances can be described to the synergistic effects between nanocomposite components.