ZIF-derived wrinkled Co3O4 polyhedra supported on 3D macroporous carbon sponge for supercapacitor electrode

Abstract Co3O4/melamine-derived carbon sponge (MCS) nanocomposite in which wrinkled ball-in-dodecahedral Co3O4 nanoparticles derived from ZIF-67 were homogeneously dispersed on the interconnected MSC was fabricated via a simple immersion and thermolysis route. As-prepared ultralight Co3O4/MCS possessed mechanically robust characteristic and unique 3D macroporous framework anchored with corrugated Co3O4 dodecahedra. Utilized as a pseudocapacitor electrode, Co3O4/MCS hybrid exhibited a great specific capacitance of 1409.5 F g−1 at the current density of 0.5 A g−1 and excellent long-term cycling stability of 93.2% after 1000 charge/discharge cycles, which might be ascribed to the synergistic effect of the inherent high redox activity from Co3O4 polyhedra combined with excellent electrical conductivity of MCS. This work demonstrates that tunable structure design and rational morphology control are efficient approaches for manufacturing novel electrode materials with extraordinary electrochemical performance.