Synthesis and characterization of reduced graphene oxide decorated with CeO2-doped MnO2 nanorods for supercapacitor applications

A novel and efficient CeO2-doped MnO2 nanorods decorated reduced graphene oxide (CeO2-MnO2/RGO) nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via hydrothermal method. The growth of the CeO2 doped MnO2 nanorods over GO sheets and reduction of GO were simultaneously carried out under hydrothermal treatment. The morphology and structure of as-synthesized nanocomposite were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy, which revealed the formation of CeO2-MnO2 decorated RGO nanocomposites. The electrochemical performance of as-prepared CeO2-MnO2/RGO nanocomposites as an active electrode material for supercapacitor was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry, charge-discharge, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) methods in 2 M alkaline medium. The obtained results revealed that as-synthesized CeO2-MnO2/RGO nanocomposite exhibited higher specific capacitance (648 F/g) as compared to other formulations (MnO2/RGO nanocomposites: 315.13 F/g and MnO2 nanorods: 228.5 F/g) at the scan rate of 5 mV/s. After 1000 cycles, it retained ∼90.4%, exhibiting a good stability. The high surface area, enhanced electrical conductivity, and good stability possess by the nanocomposite make this material a promising candidate to be applied as a supercapacitor electrode.