Supercapacitor applications of 2_aminoisobutyric acid-mediated N-doped graphene

N-doped graphene has been synthesized by the reduction of graphene oxide (GO) using 2-aminoisobutyric acid (AIB) as a reducing agent (N-GrAIB) under mild experimental conditions in aqueous medium. The reduction of GO was indicated by a change in its optical absorption as well as by its Raman spectrum and 13C solid state magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies.  The latter two techniques also confirmed the doping of N. N-GrAIB exhibited fairly high conductivity (6.3 S/cm), high specific capacitance (228 F/g at 1 A/g) with good cycling stability for 1000 charge-discharge cycles, high coulombic efficiency (100-101%) and high energy density of 20.26 Wh/kg at a power density of 400 W/kg. The present work shows that this environmental benign N-doped graphene (N-GrAIB) could be a promising electrode material for supercapacitor applications. Copyright © 2016 VBRI Press