Facile synthesis of NiO nanocubes for photocatalysts and supercapacitor electrodes

Herein, NiO nanocubes are prepared through a simple hydrothermal route. The as-synthesized product shows excellent photocatalytic properties for dye degradation, revealing that the photocatalytic degradation efficiency for Congo red is higher than other commonly used dyes. In addition, due to its unique structure, the resulting product as the electrode material shows excellent electrochemical performance. The specific capacitance of 1012 mF cm−2 can be achieved at a current density of 1 mA cm−2. Simultaneously, the as-assembled device shows good cycle performance with the capacitor retention rate of 89.3% after 10000 cycles. It indicates the as-prepared product can be used as an efficient photocatalyst and energy storage device.