Electrochemical capacitance study of cellulose-manganese dioxide nano-composite

In this study, cellulose-manganese dioxide nano-composites were synthesized and their electrochemical behavior studied as electrode in an electrochemical supercapacitor (ECS). The morphology of composites were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) was used to determine the thermal stability and water content of the composites. The electrochemical capacitance of the composites is studied by cyclic voltammetry (CV) in Na₂SO₄ electrolyte (0.5 M) at room temperature. The results show that the capacitance of the composites are strongly affected by the nano-structure, structural continuity, thermal stability and surface/structural water of manganese dioxide. A high specific capacitance of 171 F/g was obtained for cellulose-manganese dioxide nano-composite which has higher structural continuity, lower water content and better thermal stability.