A facile and scalable fabrication method of scrolled graphene/boron nitride-based van der Waals superlattice heterostructure materials for highly stable supercapacitor electrode application

Abstract

Due to the increasing demand for the development of efficient renewable energy supply systems to reduce the mismatch between energy demand and utilization, supercapacitors have attracted increasing attention in the energy industry. However, the development of energy storage electrode materials to be applied at the industrial level is still challenging due to the unsatisfactory durability and scalable production issues. This study suggested a facile and scalable one-pot fabrication method of using graphene/hexagonal boron nitride (G/BN)-based one-dimensional (1D) van der Waals superlattice heterostructures (vdWSLs) as highly stable electrode materials to enhance the energy storage performance by improving the mesopore volume content, specific surface area, electrical properties, and interfacial interaction between the stacked G/BN layers. The G/BN-based vdWSLs were fabricated by a simple scrolling process through the electromagnetic interaction between the attached magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄ NPs) on the surface of a G/BN vdW heterostructure (vdWH) and the applied magnetic field. The investigation results demonstrate that the changed morphology of the fabricated G/Fe/BN(NS) strongly affects the fine pore distribution, electrochemical performance, and electrical properties. Consequently, as a synergistic effect of an increased mesopore volume content, specific surface area, and C–B–N heterojunction interfacial area, the fabricated G/Fe/BN(NS) electrode showed a 100% enhancement of specific capacitance (207 F g⁻¹ at 0.5 A g⁻¹) and almost 7 times enhancement of electrical conductivity (800 S cm⁻¹) with a nearly 2.3 times increase of carrier mobility (716 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹) compared to that of the G/Fe/BN electrode. Furthermore, it exhibited outstanding long-term cycling stability with almost 119% capacitance retention even after 100 000 charge–discharge cycles. These results suggest that G/Fe/BN(NS) has tremendous potential as an electrode to fabricate high-performance supercapacitors with excellent cycling stability.