One-step hydrothermal synthesis of flower-like CoS hierarchitectures for application in supercapacitors

Flower-like CoS hierarchitectures were successfully synthesized through a hydrothermal route in the presence of ethylenediamine as ligand and structure-directing agent. The structure and morphology of the products were characterized by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy and $$\hbox {N}₂$$ adsorption–desorption isotherm. Flower-like CoS hierarchitectures are constructed by two-dimensional CoS nanopedals interlaced and stacked with each other. When tested as electrode material for supercapacitors, the as-fabricated CoS delivers a specific capacitance of $$357~\hbox {F g}^-1$$ at $$0.5~\hbox {A g}^-1$$ . After 2000 repetitive charge–discharge cycles, there is only 12.7% loss of the original specific capacitance. The results signify that the CoS supercapacitor possesses good electrochemical performances, suggesting its potential application in supercapacitor.