Morphology Dependent Supercapacitance of Nanostructured NiCo2O4 on Graphitic Carbon Nitride

•Nickel Cobaltite/graphitic carbon nitride hybrid nanostructure: Self-assembly.•Morphology and crystallinity-controlled synthesis.•High specific capacitance of nanoneedle-assembled NiCo2O4/g-C3N4:253 F g−1 at a current density of 2 A g−1.•Good cycle stability of nanosheet-assembled NiCo2O4/g-C3N4: 101.4% capacitance retention after 1000 cycles at a current rate of 4 A g−1

Low cost, non-toxic nanomaterials and their controllable synthesis are highly demanded in the field of supercapacitors. In this work, nanoneedle and nanosheet-like porous NiCo2O4 architectures were directly fabricated on graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), indicating structure dependence on their capacitive performances. Electrochemical performances show that nanoneedle-assembled NiCo2O4/g-C3N4 exhibits higher specific capacitance (253 F g−1 at a current density of 2 A g−1), while nanosheet-assembled NiCo2O4/g-C3N4 possesses a better cycling durability (101.4% capacitance after 1000 cycles) in a three-electrode configuration. Further studies indicate that these electrochemical differences are related to the structure and electrochemical impedance of nanocomposites.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide