Preparation of carboxylated carbon nanotubes/polypyrrole composite hollow microspheres via chemical oxidative interfacial polymerization and their electrochemical performance

• Carbon nanotubes/polypyrrole composite hollow microspheres were fabricated.
• Carboxylated carbon nanotubes were added in the interfacial polymerization.
• CNTs improved their morphological, thermal, and electrical conductive properties.
• The cycling stability as electrode materials had been evidently improved.

Well-defined carboxylated carbon nanotubes/polypyrrole composite (CNTs/PPy) hollow microspheres were fabricated via chemical oxidative interfacial polymerization of pyrrole in the presence of the carboxylated carbon nanotubes (CNT-COOH) for the first time. The near uniform particle size of 1.4 μm was proved by the TEM analysis. All the CNT-COOH added in the polymerizing system had been incorporated into the polypyrrole (PPy) shells. Compared with the PPy hollow microspheres synthesized under the similar condition only without the CNT-COOH, the CNTs/PPy hollow microspheres exhibited slightly higher electrical conductivity and specific capacitance as electrode materials for supercapacitors, while their cycling stability had been evidently improved by introducing the CNT-COOH.

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