Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy of an oxidized poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) in propylene carbonate solutions

Cation exchange behavior during the redox switching of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) films

Poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), PEDOT, films were synthesized at room temperature by potentiodynamic and potentiostatic step deposition in aqueous solutions containing EDOT monomer and LiClO4. In some solutions, the effect of small amounts of sodium dodecylsulfate, SDS, on the polymerization rate of EDOT and on the stiffness of the obtained PEDOT film was studied. The obtained PEDOT films were transferred in aqueous solutions containing cations with different molar mass, such as H+, Li+, Na+, K+, and Cs+. The apparent molar masses of the exchanged species during potentiodynamic experiments were determined by in situ microgravimetry. These measurements underlined the importance of the electrolyte chosen for electropolymerization process. It is known that SDS anions can be trapped inside the polymer layer during electropolymerization, providing them with a cation exchange behavior. However, even if the PEDOT films were deposited from an electrolyte without SDS, they still acted as cation exchangers.

Metallic Fabrics as the Current Collector for High-Performance Graphene-Based Flexible Solid-State Supercapacitor

Flexible solid-state supercapacitors attract more and more attention as the power supply for wearable electronics. To fabricate such devices, the flexible and economical current collectors are needed. In this paper, we report the stainless steel fabrics as the current collector for high-performance graphene-based supercapacitors. The stainless steel fabrics have superior properties compared with the widely used flexible current collectors. The flexible supercapacitors show large specific capacitance of 180.4 mF/cm(2), and capacitance retention of 96.8% after 7500 charge-discharge cycles. Furthermore, 96.4% of the capacitance is retained after 800 repeating stretching-bending cycles. The high performance is related to the excellent conductivity, good mechanical flexibility, and high electrochemical stability of the stainless steel fabrics. The achievement of such high-performance and flexible supercapacitor can open up exciting opportunities for wearable electronics and energy storage applications.

Electrodeposited polyethylenedioxythiophene with infiltrated gel electrolyte interface: a close contest of an all-solid-state supercapacitor with its liquid-state counterpart

We report the design of an all-solid-state supercapacitor, which has charge storage characteristics closely matching that of its liquid-state counterpart even under extreme temperature and humidity conditions. The prototype is made by electro-depositing polyethylenedioxythiophene (PEDOT) onto the individual carbon fibers of a porous carbon substrate followed by intercalating the matrix with polyvinyl alcohol-sulphuric acid (PVA-H2SO4) gel electrolyte. The electrodeposited layer of PEDOT maintained a flower-like growth pattern along the threads of each carbon fiber. This morphology and the alignment of PEDOT led to an enhanced surface area and electrical conductivity, and the pores in the system enabled effective intercalation of the polymer-gel electrolyte. Thus, the established electrode-electrolyte interface nearly mimics that of its counterpart based on the liquid electrolyte. Consequently, the solid device attained very low internal resistance (1.1 Ω cm(-2)) and a high specific capacitance (181 F g(-1)) for PEDOT at a discharge current density of 0.5 A g(-1). Even with a high areal capacitance of 836 mF cm(-2) and volumetric capacitance of 28 F cm(-3), the solid device retained a mass-specific capacitance of 111 F g(-1) for PEDOT. This is in close agreement with the value displayed by the corresponding liquid-state system (112 F g(-1)), which was fabricated by replacing the gel electrolyte with 0.5 M H2SO4. The device also showed excellent charge-discharge stability for 12 000 cycles at 5 A g(-1). The performance of the device was consistent even under wide-ranging humidity (30-80%) and temperature (-10 to 80 °C) conditions. Finally, a device fabricated by increasing the electrode area four times was used to light an LED, which validated the scalability of the process.

Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) nanotubes as electrode materials for a high-powered supercapacitor

We report the fast charging/discharging capability of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanotubes during the redox process and their potential application to a high-powered supercapacitor. PEDOT nanotubes were electrochemically synthesized in a porous alumina membrane, and their structures were characterized using electron microscopes. Cyclic voltammetry was used to characterize the specific capacitance of the PEDOT nanotubes at various scan rates. A type I supercapacitor (two symmetric electrodes) based on PEDOT nanotube electrodes was fabricated, and its energy density and power density were evaluated by galvanostatic charge/discharge cycles at various current densities. We show that the PEDOT-nanotube-based supercapacitor can achieve a high power density of 25 kW kg(-1) while maintaining 80% energy density (5.6 W h kg(-1)). This high power capability is attributed to the fast charge/discharge of nanotubular structures: hollow nanotubes allow counter-ions to readily penetrate into the polymer and access their internal surfaces, while the thin wall provides a short diffusion distance to facilitate the ion transport. Impedance spectroscopy shows that nanotubes have much lower diffusional resistance to charging ions than solid nanowires shielded by an alumina template, providing supporting information for the high charging/discharging efficiency of nanotubular structures.

Polymer films on electrodes: investigation of ion transport at poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) films by scanning electrochemical microscopy

Electropolymerization, morphology characterization, and ion transport of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) films doped with different counterions (chloride, ferrocyanide (FCN), and poly(p-styrenesulfonate) (PSS-)) on a platinum electrode were investigated using scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) during both potential step (chronocoulometric) and cyclic voltammetric scans. An ultramicroelectrode (UME) tip was positioned close to the surface of a PEDOT-modified substrate electrode, and the responses of both electrodes to a substrate potential step or linear sweep were monitored simultaneously. Chloride or ferrocyanide (FCN) ejection during PEDOT reduction was shown to be a function of the reduction potential. The nature of the cation in the bulk solution was not found to be important in the kinetics of ion transport in PEDOT+/FCN- films. Direct evidence for the incorporation of cations of Ru(NH3)6(3+/2+) in a PEDOT film during its reduction was also obtained by SECM measurements. The adsorption of Ru(NH3)6(3+) in fully oxidized PEDOT+/PSS- films was observed and attributed to ion exchange between the Na+ co-ion of PSS- and Ru(NH3)6(3+) in the bulk solution.