Facile synthesis of three-dimensional graphene/nickel oxide nanoparticles composites for high performance supercapacitor electrodes

Abstract This study presents a simple and facile method for preparing three-dimensional (3D) porous reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and NiO nanoparticles composites (3D-RGNi) as high performance supercapacitor electrodes. The 3D porous graphene framework is first produced by the self-assembly of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) particles and graphene oxide (GO), followed the adsorption of Ni precursor on GO. High-temperature treatment is simultaneously carried out to fabricate the 3D porous structured rGO decorated with NiO nanoparticles. The as-synthesized 3D-RGNi electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 1328 F g −1 at a current density of 1 A g −1 and an excellent cycling stability with 87% retention of the capacitance after 2000 cycles of galvanostatic charge–discharge. These high capacitance performances are attributed to the synergistic effects from the incorporation of the rGO network and NiO nanoparticles, and the highly porous structure of 3D-RGNi. Hence, it is expected that 3D-RGNi might serve as a promising materials for electrochemical energy storage applications.