Peltophorum pterocarpum -derived microporous activated carbon conjugated with polycarbazole for synergistic performance in supercapacitor application

The novel camphor-10-sulfonic acid (CSA)-doped polycarbazole (PCz)/activated carbon (AC) nanocomposite was prepared via in situ chemical oxidative polymerisation of carbazole by using ammonium per-sulphate (APS) as an oxidising agent. The prepared nanocomposite electrode materials were characterised with an emphasis on parameters important for electrochemical storage systems including large specific surface area, pore volume and thermal stability by using Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), respectively. The electrochemical behaviour of the prepared sample was analysed by cyclic voltammetry (CV). The formation of prepared sample was confirmed by XRD and Raman analysis. The HR-TEM and XPS characterisation techniques were also studied for surface morphology and chemical composition of the surface. The utility of prominent polycarbazole/activated carbon nanocomposite as an electrode for supercapacitor application is established. The PCz/AC nanocomposite electrode material exhibits specific capacitance 52 F g −1 at current density of 5 mA g −1 in aqueous electrolyte 3 M KOH. This work provides insight on the promising novel PCz/AC composite electrode material for energy storage application.