A sustainable natural biomass coconut shell derived activated carbon as emerging electrode material for energy storage applications

Activated carbon was synthesised and prepared from biomass Coconut shells shell using chemical activating agents, Phosphoric acid (PA-AC), mixed Potassium Hydroxide and Phosphoric acid (PHPA-AC) at 600° C for 1 hour. The SEM image showed well – developed pores and suggested about prepared activated carbon with high surface area and porosity. The broad XRD peaks indicated the presence of disordered carbon structure. The presence of high carbon content (74.77% and 77.66%) was confirmed by Energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The specific surface area of PA-AC and PHPA-AC are 872 and 888 m2/g with average pore size 1.05 and 1.08 nm respectively. The estimated specific capacitance of PHPA-AC sample is about 332 F/g at 2 A/g. The energy and power density of PHPA-AC are 46 Wh/Kg and 111 W/Kg respectively. The electrochemical performance discloses that the prepared PA-AC and PHPA-AC are suitable materials to make an electrode in an electrochemical double layer capacitance (EDLC).