Graphene Quantum Dot Reinforced Electrospun Carbon Nanofiber Fabrics with High Surface Area for Ultrahigh Rate Supercapacitors.

Abstract

High surface area, good conductivity, and high mechanical strength are important for carbon nanofiber fabrics (CNFs) as high-performance supercapacitor electrodes. However, it remains a big challenge because of the trade-off between the strong and continuous conductive network and a well-developed porous structure. Herein, we report a simple strategy to integrate these properties into the electrospun CNFs by adding graphene quantum dots (GQDs). The uniformly embedded GQDs play a crucial bifunctional role in constructing an entire reinforcing phase and conductive network. Compared with the pure CNF, the GQD-reinforced activated CNF exhibits a greatly enlarged surface area from 140 to 2032 m2 g-1 as well as a significantly improved conductivity and strength of 5.5 and 2.5 times, respectively. The mechanism of the robust reinforcing effect is deeply investigated. As a freestanding supercapacitor electrode, the fabric performs a high capacitance of 335 F g-1 at 1 A g-1 and extremely high capacitance retentions of 77% at 100 A g-1 and 45% at 500 A g-1. Importantly, the symmetric device can be charged to 80% capacitance within only 2.2 s, showing great potential for high-power startup supplies.