Z. Zhang, Zilei Deng, Qian Wang
Dec 15, 2016
Citations
0
Influential Citations
6
Citations
Journal
Journal of Electroanalytical Chemistry
Abstract
Abstract Using p -phenylenediamine (PPD) or p -nitroaniline (PNA) as effective redox additive can largely improve the capacitive performances of supercapacitors when incorporated into KOH solution. And how to vividly differentiate the roles of amine and nitro groups adherent to phenyl ring really is an interesting scientific issue. Herein, with the help of a series of capacitive techniques, it is discerned that the PPD can release two protons and two electrons, while the PNA realizes the gain/loss of one proton and one electron, in particular accompanied with the partial reduction of nitro group. Clearly, introducing PPD or PNA substances into KOH solution can largely improve the specific capacitance as well as the resultant energy densities, but slightly deteriorates the energy efficiency. Besides, the incorporation of PNA leads to higher cycling stability than that of the PPD, which is primarily incurred by the fact that the nitro group adherent to phenyl ring delivers better stability. Furthermore, the potential window of 0–1 V or − 0.5–0.5 V strongly affects the capacitive performances. The present research results are expected to provide us the guidance for the usage of PPD or PNA when incorporated into KOH solution for elevating the supercapacitors' performances.