Preparation of polyaniline/graphene oxide nanocomposite for the application of supercapacitor

Graphene oxide was synthesized by an improved Hummers method. Three polyaniline (PANI)/graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposite electrode materials were prepared from aniline (ANI), GO, and ammonium persulfate (APS) by chemical polymerization with the mass ratio (mANI:mGO) 1000:1, 100:1, and 10:1 in ice water, respectively. The crystal structure and the surface topography of all materials were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectrum (FT-IR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The electrochemical properties of the composite were evaluated by cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge/discharge, and the impedance spectroscope, respectively. The test results show that the composites have similar and enhanced cyclic voltammetry performance compared with pure PANI based electrode material. The PANI/GO composite synthesized with the mass ratio (mANI:mGO) 1000:1 possessed excellent capacitive behavior with a specific capacitance as high as 355.2 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1 in 1 mol L−1 H2SO4 electrolyte due to the unique morphology of Mace-like PANI/GO composite, and after 1000 cycles, the specific capacitance of the composite still has 285.8 F g−1. These results demonstrate exciting potentials of the composite for high performance supercapacitors or other power source system.