Carbon black and reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite for binder-free supercapacitors with reduced graphene oxide paper as the current collector

Reduced graphene oxide (rGO) is an ideal candidate for the improvement of supercapacitor (SC) performances due to its industrial-ready manufacturing process and ease of processing. In this work, rGO was used as an active binder for the manufacture of carbon black (CB) and rGO-based SCs. Being able to form a stable suspension in water, graphene oxide (GO) was initially exploited as a dispersing agent to fabricate a homogeneous slurry with CB having exclusively water as a low-cost and environment-friendly solvent. After casting on a suitable substrate, the material was subjected to thermal treatment allowing the reduction of GO to rGO, which was successively confirmed by chemical−physical analysis. An innovative current collector, consisting of high-quality rGO paper, was also proposed ensuring an improved adhesion between the active material and the substrate and a reduction of the whole weight with respect to devices fabricated using common metallic current collectors. Due to the interesting electrochemical performances, with a high specific power of 32.1 kW kg⁻¹ and a corresponding specific energy of 8.8 Wh kg⁻¹ at a current of 1 A g⁻¹, and the improved manufacturing process, the described “all-graphene-based” device represents a valuable candidate for the future of SCs.