Sea anemone-like zinc-cobalt oxysulfides grown on Ni foam as a battery-type electrode with admirable performance

Sea anemone-like zinc-cobalt (Zn-Co) oxysulfides grown on nickel foam were synthesized by a hydrothermal treatment for the first time as a battery-type electrode for hybrid supercapacitors. Such a binder-free sea anemone-like Zn-Co oxysulfide electrode displays improved electrochemical properties, which can be attributed to the unique sea anemone-like morphology and the partly replacement of oxygen with sulfur since sulfur possesses a lower electronegativity. As a result, the Zn-Co oxysulfide electrode exhibits a specific capacity of 645.5 C g −1 (1 A g −1 ) which is much higher than 386.0 C g −1 of Zn-Co oxide electrode at the same conditions. In addition, the Zn-Co oxysulfide electrode also demonstrates good cycling stability (76.1% capacity retention after 1000 cycles). According to these, the Zn-Co oxysulfide electrode is testified to be a promising faradaic electrode for energy storage.