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Mn single-atoms decorated CNT electrodes for high-performance supercapacitors

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Abstract

Developing highly robust and efficient electrode materials is of critical importance to promoting the energy density of current supercapacitors for commercialization. Herein, we report an efficient catalyst with monodispersed Mn single-atoms embedded in carbon nanotubes (Mn-CNTs) for enhancing the electrode performance of supercapacitors. A high specific capacitance (1523.6 F·g−1 at 1.0 A·g−1) can be achieved, which is about twice as high as the specific capacitance of the electrode material without the introduction of Mn single-atoms. Remarkably, the asymmetric electrochemical capacitor created with Mn-CNT and activated carbon exhibits a high energy density of 180.8 Wh·kg−1 at a power density of 1.4 kW·kg−1, much higher than most reported results. The study shows that the integration of Mn atoms into the CNT can enhance the charge transport capacity and the number of polar active sites of Mn-CNT and then facilitate chemical interactions between Mn-CNT and OH−. This work provides a novel strategy to enable high-energy storage in supercapacitors by introducing single-atoms into carbon nanotubes to improve electrodes’ energy density and cycle life.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Yunnan provincial education department scientific research fund project (No. 2022J0815), Special Youth Project for Fundamental Research in Yunnan Province (No. 202301AU070227), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 12264056), and Yunnan Expert Workstation (No. 202205AF150008). Prof. Z. W. would like to thank the support from the International Joint Research Center for Intelligent Nano Environmental Protection New Materials and Testing Technology (No. SDGH2108), the Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science & Technology, the 111 Project, and Joint International Research Laboratory of Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices. The authors thank the Shiyanjia Lab (www.shiyanjia.com) for their assistance with ICP and XPS characterization.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Yunnan Key Laboratory of Opto-Electronic Information Technology, Institute of Physics and Electronic Information, Yunnan Normal University, Kunming, 650500, China

    Qian Rong, Yingkai Liu & Yuanrong Liu

  2. Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, China

    Chao Yuwen

  3. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA

    Chunyang Wang

  4. School of Materials Science and Engineering, National Institute for Advanced Materials, Smart Sensing Interdisciplinary Science Center, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300350, China

    Yang Wang & Ding Zhang

  5. Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-Based Functional Materials and Devices, Institute of Functional Nano and Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China

    Zhen Wen

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  1. Qian Rong
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  2. Chao Yuwen
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  3. Yingkai Liu
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Correspondence to Yingkai Liu, Ding Zhang or Zhen Wen.

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Rong, Q., Yuwen, C., Liu, Y. et al. Mn single-atoms decorated CNT electrodes for high-performance supercapacitors. Nano Res. 17, 4039–4046 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-023-6279-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-023-6279-5

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