Au-assisted polymerization of conductive poly(N-phenylglycine) as high-performance positive electrodes for asymmetric supercapacitors.

Herein, a novel conductive poly(N-phenylglycine) (PNPG) polymer was successfully prepared, byelectrochemical polymerization method (+0.75 VAg/AgCl) for 10 min, on flexible stainless-steel plate coated with a thin Au film (Au/SS) to serve as a binder-free pseudocapacitive PNPG/Au/SS electrode for energy storage devices. Compared to the electrode without Au coating, PNPG/Au/SS electrode exhibited better electrochemical performance with larger specific capacitance (495 F gat a current density of 2 A g), higher rate performance and lower resistance, which are good indications to act as a positive electrode for asymmetric supercapacitor devices. Combined with activated carbon as a negative electrode, an asymmetric supercapacitor device was constructed. It displayed a specific capacitance of 38 F gat a current density of 0.5 A gand an energy density of 5.3 Wh kgat a power density of 250 W kg. Experimentally, two asymmetric supercapacitor devices were connected in series to power a home-made windmill continuously for 8 s, revealing the high potential of this novel conductive polymer material for energy storage application.