Facile Synthesis of PANI-NiS2 Binary Nanocomposites for Asymmetric
Supercapacitor
Abstract
This paper presents the synthesis and electrochemical evaluation of
nickel sulfide (NiS 2) nanosheet encapsulated
polyaniline (PANI) nanofiber nanocomposites. These nanocomposites,
synthesized via chemical reflux at 70℃ in varying NiS 2
to PANI mass ratios (1:1, 1:2, 1:3), are designated as NiP1, NiP2, and
NiP3. X-ray diffraction (XRD) data reveals the greater crystallite size
of NiP2 which further leads to higher surface area. Scanning electron
microscopy (SEM) analysis shows that NiP2 is more porous due to well
assembled morphology of NiS 2 nanosheets over PANI
nanofibers. Among the composites, the NiP2 variant demonstrates superior
electrochemical performance, achieving a specific capacitance of 217.88
F g -1 at a current density of 1 A g
-1 in a 2M KOH electrolyte. Further enhancing the
energy density of supercapacitors for advanced applications, the
structure-modulated NiP2 (positive potential electrode) is integrated
with functionalized carbon nanotubes (f-CNT) as the negative potential
material, extending the voltage window from 0.65 to 1.4V. The
NiP2//f-CNT supercapacitor displays an energy density of 16 Wh kg
-1 at a power density of 1318.53 W kg
-1, maintaining 90.7% of its initial capacitance
after 5000 charge-discharge cycles. These findings highlight the
transformative potential of NiS 2/PANI nanocomposites,
leveraging the synergistic effects between NiS 2 and
PANI to significantly enhance ion transport and charge storage
capabilities, thus providing a viable solution to the shortcomings of
conventional supercapacitor electrodes.