Ternary nanocomposite SWNT/WO3/PANI thin film electrodes for supercapacitors

We describe a simple and fast process for the fabrication of ternary nanocomposite supercapacitor electrodes. In this work, thin film supercapacitor electrodes made up of binder-free single walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) thin films were deposited onto glass substrates by vacuum filtration followed by stamping method. Next, tungsten oxide (WO3) and polyaniline (PANI) were electrodeposited on the SWNT thin films. Combination of SWNTs and pseudocapacitive WO3 and PANI created a synergistic and complementary effect, which enhanced the electrochemical energy storage capacity. A specific capacitance of 28.5 mF/cm2 was obtained at a current density of 0.13 mA/cm2. Ternary nanocomposite thin film supercapacitor electrodes showed good capacity retention (76%), limited by the PANI stability, after 2000 cycles.