Biomass is an ideal source for the preparation of electrode
materials
due to its abundant distribution, renewability, and low price. Carbon
materials constructed by nitrogen doping can greatly improve the performance
of electrode materials, provide additional pseudocapacitance, and
expand the application of supercapacitors in practice. Nitrogen-doped
walnut shell (WS) carbon materials were prepared by chemical cross-linking
and KOH activation using WS and γ-polyglutamic acid as raw materials.
The effects of the ratio for carbon and nitrogen source compounds
and activation temperature on the morphology, pore structure, graphitization
of the carbon materials, and their electrochemical properties were
systematically investigated. Nitrogen-doped WS carbon materials possessed
a unique 2D lamellar structure and a high specific surface area (1932
m2 g–1). The addition of heteroatoms
increased the polarizability and conductivity of the carbon material
and introduced additional pseudocapacitance as a result of the good
electrochemical performance. At a current density of 0.5 A g–1, the specific capacitance of materials can reach 342.0 F g–1 with a capacitance retention rate of 73% (20 A g–1). After 8000 cycles, the capacitance loss is only 8%, providing
excellent electrochemical performance.