Preparation of a MoS2/carbon nanotube composite as an electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors

Abstract

MoS2 and MoS2/carbon allotrope (MoS2/C) composites for use as anodes in supercapacitors were prepared via a facile hydrothermal method. In this study, we report the effects of various carbon-based materials (2D graphene nanosheet (GNS), 1D carbon nanotube (CNT), and 0D nano carbon (NC)) on the electrochemical performances. Among all nanocomposites studied, MoS2/CNT exhibited the best electrochemical performance. Specifically, the MoS2/CNT composite exhibits remarkable performances with a high specific capacitance of 402 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1 and an outstanding cycling stability with 81.9% capacitance retention after 10000 continuous charge-discharge cycles at a high current density of 1 A g-1, making it adaptive for high-performance supercapacitors. The superiority of MoS2/CNT was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, which showed that MoS2 nanosheets were uniformly loaded into the three-dimensional interconnected network of nanotubes, providing an excellent three dimensional charge transfer network and electrolyte diffusion channels while effectively buffering the collapse and aggregation of active materials during charge-discharge processes. Overall, the MoS2/CNT nanocomposite synthesized by a simple hydrothermal process presents a new and promising candidate for high-performance anodes for supercapacitors.