Electrochemical Synthesis and Characterization of Interpenetrating Networks of Conducting Polymers for Enhanced Charge Storage

A supercapacitor electrode consisting of an interpenetrating network of poly(aminoanthraquinone) (PAAQ) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) is synthesized by a simple two-step galvanostatic deposition and characterized by electrochemical methods. By electrodepositing PEDOT on top of PAAQ, it is possible to access the quinones in PAAQ and as a result the specific capacitance of PAAQ increases from 90 to 383 F g(-1) and also significantly improves the charge-storage capacity from 25 to 106 mAh g(-1) at a discharge current of 1 A g(-1). These values are also significantly higher than most reported values for PEDOT and hybrids. Moreover, the hybrid material shows excellent stability with 91% of the initial capacitance being retained after 2000 cycles at a discharge rate of 2 A g(-1).