Co-BDC MOF/Graphene Nanohybrid as an Efficient Electrode Material for High-Performance Supercapacitors

Abstract

A Co-BDC metal–organic framework/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) hybrid was synthesized via in-situ MOF growth followed by controlled pyrolysis to obtain a Co-BDC–derived nanoporous carbon (NPC)/rGO electrode for supercapacitors. The rGO-assisted transformation preserves the precursor integrity and yields a uniform, conductive, and porous carbon architecture with well-dispersed Co0 species. The optimized NPC/rGO-10 electrode delivers a specific capacitance of 172 F g–1 at 1 A g–1 with 96% retention after 6,000 cycles. An asymmetric device (NPC/rGO-10//rGO) shows stable operation over 30,000 cycles and maintains 94.4%, emphasizing the outstanding reversibility and structural robustness of the electrode material. Additionally, rGO incorporation reduced the level of Co leaching into the electrolyte, indicating enhanced chemical stability under electrochemical operation. The novelty of this work lies in the rGO-assisted MOF-to-carbon conversion strategy, which enables a robust nanoporous carbon/graphene hybrid with suppressed metal leaching and exceptional long-term stability.