Synthesis and Characterisation of Reduced Graphene Oxide/Bismuth Composite for Electrodes in Electrochemical Energy Storage Devices

Abstract

A reduced graphene oxide/bismuth (rGO/Bi) composite was synthesized for the first time using a polyol process at a low reaction temperature and with a short reaction time (60 °C and 3 hours, respectively). The as-prepared sample is structured with 20-50 nm diameter bismuth particles distributed on the rGO sheets. The rGO/Bi composite displays a combination of capacitive and battery-like charge storage, achieving a specific capacity value of 773 C g^-1 at a current density of 0.2 A g^-1 when charged to 1 V. The material not only has good power density but also shows moderate stability in cycling tests with current densities as high as 5 A g^-1 . The relatively high abundance and low price of bismuth make this rGO/Bi material a promising candidate for use in electrode materials in future energy storage devices.