Electrodeposition of carbon nanotube/carbon fabric composite using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide for high performance capacitor

High performance capacitor based on multi-walled carbon nanotube/carbon fabric (MWCNT/CF) composite is fabricated by electrophoretic deposition. The deposition is effectively facilitated by employing cationic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide to charge and disperse the nanotubes in an aqueous solution. Electrochemical results indicate that MWCNT/CF shows a high specific capacitance of 102 F g−1, rapid charge/discharge characteristic and good cycling stability, which is much better than that of MWCNTs coated on stainless steel. The excellent performance is attributed to the unique architecture formed by three dimensional and interconnected CF as the current collector, favoring the accessibility for ions and charge transfer during the electrochemical tests. The flexible MWCNT/CF with excellent capacitor behaviors can be developed to be an advanced carbon/carbon electrode material for capacitors.

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► Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) was electrodeposited onto carbon fabric (CF).
► The deposition was facilitated by using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide.
► A three dimensional structure providing better accessibility for ions was achieved.
► The excellent performances of MWCNT/CF were due to the unique structure.
► Different parameters during the synthesis process also influenced the capacitance.