Design and Regulation of Novel MnFe2O4@C Nanowires as High Performance Electrode for Supercapacitor

Abstract

Bimetallic oxides have been considered as potential candidates for supercapacitors due to their relatively high electric conductivity, abundant redox reactions and cheapness. However, nanoparticle aggregation and huge volume variation during charging-discharging procedures make it hard for them to be applied widely. In this work, one-dimensional (1D) MnFe₂O₄@C nanowires were in-situ synthesized via a simply modified micro-emulsion technique, followed by thermal treatment. The novel 1D and core-shell architecture, and in-situ carbon coating promote its electric conductivity and porous feature. Due to these advantages, the MnFe₂O₄@C electrode exhibits a high specific capacitance of 824 F·g^-1 at 0.1 A·g^-1 and remains 476 F·g^-1 at 5 A·g^-1. After 10,000 cycles, the capacitance retention of the MnFe₂O₄@C electrode is up to 93.9%, suggesting its excellent long-term cycling stability. After assembling with activated carbon (AC) to form a MnFe₂O₄@C//AC device, the energy density of this MnFe₂O₄@C//AC device is 27 W·h·kg^-1 at a power density of 290 W·kg^-1, and remains at a 10 W·h·kg^-1 energy density at a high power density of 9300 W·kg^-1.