Simultaneous Oxidation and Doping of Aniline to Polyaniline by Oxidative Template: Electrochemical Performance in Supercapacitor

Polyaniline salts containing sulfuric acid and cetyltrimethylammonium sulfate dopants were prepared by aqueous (PANI-Aq), emulsion (PANI-Em), and interfacial (PANI-In) polymerization pathways using cetyltrimethylammonium peroxodisulfate as an oxidative template. Formation of polyaniline was confirmed from infrared and X-ray diffraction spectral results. Value of conductivity (15 S cm−1) of the polyaniline salt prepared by emulsion polymerization pathway was higher with that of the conventional polyaniline salt. PANI-Aq, PANI-Em, and PANI-In showed layered, flower petals, and nanorod and flower petals morphologies, respectively. These polyaniline salts were used as electrode in supercapacitor. Specific capacitance of PANI-Em, PANI-Aq, and PANI-In were 520, 484, and 474 F g−1, which were higher than the conventional PANI-H2SO4 salt (390). Energy density was 26, 24.2, and 23.6 Wh kg−1, respectively at a power density of 120 W kg−1. After 3000 charge-discharge cycles, retention in the specific capacitance values of polyaniline salts was 86% (PANI-Em), 85.4% (PANI-Aq) and 76.1% (PANI-In).