High pseudocapacitance of MnO2 nanoparticles in graphitic disordered mesoporous carbon at high scan rates

Nanocomposites composed of MnO{sub 2} and graphitic disordered mesoporous carbon (MnO{sub 2}/C) were synthesized for high total specific capacitance and redox pseudocapacitance (C{sub MnO{sub 2}}) at high scan rates up to 200 mV s{sup -1}. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) demonstrated that MnO{sub 2} nanodomains were highly dispersed throughout the mesoporous carbon structure. According to HRTEM and X-ray diffraction (XRD), the MnO{sub 2} domains are shown to be primarily amorphous and less than 5 nm in size. For these composites in aqueous 1 M Na{sub 2}SO{sub 4} electrolyte, C{sub MnO{sub 2}} reached 500 F/g{sub MnO{sub 2}} at 2 mV s{sup -1} for 8.8 wt% MnO{sub 2}. A capacitance fade of only 20% over a 100-fold change in scan rate was observed for a high loading of 35 wt% MnO{sub 2} with a C{sub MnO{sub 2}} of 310 F/g{sub MnO{sub 2}} at the highest scan rate of 200 mV s{sup -1}. The high electronic conductivity of the graphitic 3D disordered mesoporous carbon support in conjunction with the thin MnO{sub 2} nanodomains facilitate rapid electron and ion transport offering the potential of improved high power density energy storage pseudocapacitors.