Construction of MXene-Coupled Nitrogen-Doped Porous Carbon Hybrid from a Conjugated Microporous Polymer for High-Performance Supercapacitors

Abstract

MXene-based organic material hybrids present huge potential for energy storage applications. However, the compatibility of hydrophilic MXenes with organic materials and their subsequent processing still remain elusive. Herein, a MXene-based 2D sandwich-like conjugated microporous polymer (MX-CMP) manifesting high specific surface area and layered structure using a functionalized MXene as a 2D structure-directing template is developed. The MX-CMP is used as a robust organic precursor for preparing a MXene-coupled nitrogen-doped porous carbon (MX-MC-N) hybrid. The interconnected porous networks and large aspect ratio of MX-MC-N enhances the electrochemical active surface area and boosts the long-distance charge transport. This leads to excellent performance for a three-electrode, flexible all-solid-state supercapacitor (ASSC) and an asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) with an expanded voltage window (1.6 V) and long-term cyclability (>5000 cycles) compared to many state-of-the-art analogous materials and hybrids. It is believed that the synthetic strategy presented for the MX-MC-N hybrid will indubitably pave a path for the development of novel MXenes and heteroatom-doped porous hybrid materials for sustainable energy applications.