Recycled waste paper—A new source of raw material for electric double-layer capacitors

For the first time, a new carbon–carbon composite electrode material for supercapacitors is prepared by simple KOH activation of waste newspaper. The amorphous nature and surface morphology of the carbon composite are investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption/desorption and scanning electron microscopy. The surface area and pore diameter are 416 m2 g−1 and 5.9 nm, respectively. Electrochemical characteristics are evaluated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and charge–discharge tests in 6.0 M KOH at a 1 mA cm−2 current density. The CV results reveal a maximum specific capacitance of 180 F g−1 at a 2 mV s−1 scan rate and the data explore a development of new use for waste paper into a valuable energy storage material.