Towards ultrahigh volumetric capacitance: Graphene derived highly dense but porous carbons for supercapacitors

Abstract

A small volumetric capacitance resulting from a low packing density is one of the major limitations for novel nanocarbons finding real applications in commercial electrochemical energy storage devices. Here we report a carbon with a density of 1.58â.g cm-3, 70% of the density of graphite, constructed of compactly interlinked graphene nanosheets, which is produced by an evaporation-induced drying of a graphene hydrogel. Such a carbon balances two seemingly incompatible characteristics: a porous microstructure and a high density, and therefore has a volumetric capacitance for electrochemical capacitors (ECs) up to 376â.F cm-3, which is the highest value so far reported for carbon materials in an aqueous electrolyte. More promising, the carbon is conductive and moldable, and thus could be used directly as a well-shaped electrode sheet for the assembly of a supercapacitor device free of any additives, resulting in device-level high energy density ECs.