In this paper, a simple “one pot” methodology
to
synthesize snowflake-like dendritic CoNi alloy-reduced graphene oxide
(RGO) nanocomposites has been reported. First-principles quantum mechanical
calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) have been conducted
to understand the electronic structures and properties of the interface
between Co, Ni, and graphene. Detailed investigations have been conducted
to evaluate the performance of CoNi alloy and CoNi-RGO nanocomposites
for two different types of applications: (i) as the catalyst for the
reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol and Knoevenagel condensation reaction
and (ii) as the active electrode material in the supercapacitor applications.
Here, the influence of microstructures of CoNi alloy particles (spherical
vs snowflake-like dendritic) and the effect of immobilization of CoNi
alloy on the surface of RGO on the performance of CoNi-RGO nanocomposites
have been demonstrated. CoNi alloy having a snowflake-like dendritic
microstructure exhibited better performance than that of spherical
CoNi alloy, and CoNi-RGO nanocomposites showed improved properties
compared to CoNi alloy. The kapp value
of the (CoNiD)60RGO40-catalyzed reduction
reaction of 4-nitrophenol is 20.55 × 10–3 s–1, which is comparable and, in some cases, superior
to many RGO-based catalysts. The (CoNiD)60RGO40-catalyzed Knoevenagel condensation reaction showed the %
yield of the products in the range of 80–93%. (CoNiD)60RGO40 showed a specific capacitance of 501
F g–1 (at 6 A g–1), 21.08 Wh kg–1 energy density at a power density of 1650 W kg–1, and a retention of ∼85% of capacitance after
4000 cycles. These results indicate that (CoNiD)60RGO40 could be considered as a promising electrode material
for high-performance supercapacitors. The synergistic effect, derived
from the hierarchical structure of CoNiD-RGO nanocomposites,
is the origin for its superior performance. The easy synthetic methodology,
high catalytic efficiency, and excellent supercapacitance performance
make (CoNiD)60RGO40 an appealing
multifunctional material.