Fabrication of Polyaniline/Graphene/Polyester Textile Electrode Materials for Flexible Supercapacitors with High Capacitance and Cycling Stability

Abstract

Abstract Vertical polyaniline (PANI) nanowire arrays on graphene‐sheet‐coated polyester cloth (RGO/PETC) were fabricated by the in situ chemical polymerization of aniline. The 3D conductive network that was formed by the graphene sheets greatly enhanced the conductivity of PANI/RGO/PETC and improved its mechanical stability. PANI nanowire arrays increased the active surface area of PANI, whilst the hierarchically porous structure of the PANI/RGO/PETC electrode facilitated the diffusion of the electrolyte ions. Electrochemical measurements showed that the composite electrode exhibited a maximum specific capacitance of 1293 F g −1 at a current density of 1 A g −1 . Capacitance retention was greater than 95 %, even after 3000 cycles, which indicated that the electrode material has excellent cycling stability. Moreover, the electrode structure endowed the PANI/RGO/PETC electrode with a stable electrochemical performance under mechanical bending and stretching.