Enhanced active sites possessing three-dimensional ternary nanocomposites of reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline/Vulcan carbon for high performance supercapacitors

•Reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline/Vulcan carbon nanocomposites were prepared through a simple sonication method.•Vulcan carbons act as spacer to increase the active sites for electrochemical reaction.•The nanocomposite as a supercapacitor material exhibits excellent rate capability and cycling stability.

Three-dimensional ternary nanocomposites of reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline/Vulcan carbon (rGO/PANI/VC) were prepared through a simple sonication method. The Vulcan carbons within rGO/polyaniline composites (rGO/PANI) act as spacer to enhance the active sites for electrochemical reaction, resulting in the improvement of capacitive performances. Extra ion-diffusion paths were also created accordingly, resulting in the improvement of rate performance. Additionally, the cycle stability was improved by providing the space for stable expansion of PANI during capacitive reaction. The specific capacitance estimated by cycle voltammetry was enhanced to 446 F g−1 at a scan rate of 5 mV s−1, while rGO/PANI showed 347 F g−1. In addition, the rGO/PANI/VC exhibited better rate capability of 87% at 100 mV s−1 (compared with ∼85% for the rGO/PANI) and cycle stability of 80% after 2000 cycles at 10 A g−1 (compared with a 62.9% for the rGO/PANI). It is believed that rGO/PANI/VC with unique structure can be prospective electrode materials for supercapacitors.

Graphical abstractThe paper reported a ternary nanocomposite of reduced graphene oxide/polyaniline/Vulcan carbon (rGO/PANI/VC) using facile sonication method. The nanocomposite as a supercapacitor material exhibits excellent rate capability and cycling stability.Download high-res image (70KB)Download full-size image