Comparative electrochemical properties of MO (ZrO₂, V₂O₅) based polyaniline nanocomposites for high-performance supercapacitor applications

Due to its distinctive qualities, such as its moderate energy density, extended service life, rapid discharge-charge rates, and superior safety, supercapacitors (SCs) are gaining more and more attention. A zirconium oxide ZrO₂ (Zr) and vanadium oxide V₂O₅ (VO) based PANI nanocomposites, denoted as (ZrP for ZrO₂/PANI, and VOP for V₂O₅/PANI) are fabricated using hydrothermal technique in this research work. Morphological and phase investigations validated the random particle shapes with good crystallinity and purity of the samples. The N₂ sorption/desorption isotherm reveals a mesoporous feature of the electrodes and the highest BET surface area (36.5 m²/g) with large electroactive sites, which offers abundant faradaic reactions for charge storage. The I-V characteristics confirm their excellent conduction capabilities as well. When utilized as electrodes for SCs in the three-electrode setup, the VOP composite electrode attains the highest capacitance of 1372 F g⁻¹ at a scan rate of 5 mV s⁻¹ compared with other active electrodes. Besides that, the VOP electrodes offer superior cyclic stability, with a retention rate of 94.28% even after 7000 consecutive charge/discharge cycles. It has been discovered that the in two electrode VOP asymmetric device exhibited remarkable specific capacitance of 651.36 Fg⁻¹ at 5 mV s⁻¹ demonstrating a significant capacitance retention of 87.6% over 6000 cycles. The results suggest that the material could be a good contender for electrode materials in supercapacitors.