Nitrogen-doped activated carbon nanotubes derived from polyaniline for high-performance supercapacitors

Abstract Herein, one kind of nitrogen-doped activated carbon nanotubes (ACNTs) was fabricated by carbonizing and activating a polyaniline precursor with nanotube morphology at 600°C-800°C in Ar atmosphere. Various characterizations reveal that the ACNTs display high specific surface area, narrow pore size distribution and high nitrogen content, and the ACNTs interweave together to form a dimensional conductive network. Among the ACNTs materials, the ACNTs-700 sample with a specific surface area of 2988 m ² g ⁻ ¹ exhibits the largest capacitance (474 F g ⁻ ¹ at the current density of 0.1 A g ⁻ ¹ ) and best rate capability (335 F g ⁻ ¹ at the density of 10.0 A g ⁻ ¹ ), as well as the superior durability with a capacity retention of 96% after 2000 charge/discharge cycles, which is mainly attributed to its unique conductive network, large surface area and moderate nitrogen-doping content.