Electrochemical deposition of polyaniline nanosheets mediated by sulfonated polyaniline functionalized graphenes

Two-dimensional polyaniline (PANI) nanosheets have been prepared inductively by electropolymerization of aniline monomer in an aqueous electrolyte containing sulfonated PANI-functionalized graphenes (SPANI-Gs). The SPANI-G aqueous solution is used directly as the electrolyte for electropolymerization of aniline. The formation of PANI nanosheets depends strongly on the aniline monomer concentration and the as-prepared nanosheets have a thickness of ca. 10 nm. Morphologic characterization reveals the resultant samples are stacked loosely on the surface of electrodes with a large surface area accessible to electrolyte. Electrochemical investigation has shown that the PANI nanosheets formed in the presence of SPANI-Gs had a large specific capacitance of 372 F g−1 at a current density of 0.3 A g−1, five times higher than that of a normal PANI film synthesized in the absence of SPANI-Gs, showing the great potential for energy storage applications.