Facile synthesis of porous Co3O4 nanoplates for supercapacitor applications

Porous tricobalt tetraoxide (Co3O4) nanoplates with large aspect ratio have been obtained by annealing Co(OH)2 precursor nanoplates synthesized by a facile reflux method without the need for any template or surfactant. After the heat treatment, the as-obtained phase-pure Co3O4 nanoplates with a well-retained structure were applied as the electrode material for supercapacitors, and the sample exhibits excellent performance with a high specific capacitance of 225 F g−1 after 2000 charge–discharge cycles at 2 A g−1, corresponding to a retention of 97% of the initial capacitance.