Electrodeposited Nano-flakes of Manganese Oxide on Macroporous Ni Electrode Exhibiting High Pseudocapacitance

A porous nickel (P-Ni) substrate was prepared by selective leaching of zinc from pressed pellets containing powders of Ni & Zn in 4 M NaOH solution. Anodic deposition of manganese oxide onto the porous Ni substrate (/P-Ni) formed nano-flakes of manganese oxide layers as revealed in SEM studies. Pseudocapacitance of this oxide electrode was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and chronopotentiometry (CHP) in 2 M NaOH solution. The specific capacitance of the Mn oxide electrode was as high as 1515 F , which was ten times higher than Mn oxide deposited on a flat Ni-ribbon. 80% of capacity was retained after 200 charge/discharge cycles. The system showed no loss of activity in dry form over period of days. The impedance studies indicated highly conducting /P-Ni substance and the obtained specific capacitance from impedance data showed good agreement with the charge/discharge measurements.