Coherent V 4+ -rich V 2 O 5 /carbon aerogel nanocomposites for high performance supercapacitors

V 4+ -rich V 2 O 5 /carbon aerogel (V 4+ -V 2 O 5 /CA) composites were synthesized as electrode materials for supercapacitors via in-situ hydrolysis-condensation processing. Carbon aerogel (CA) promotes the deposition of amorphous vanadium oxide and catalyzes the crystallization of V 4 +-rich V 2 O 5 nanosheets at much reduced temperature. With a uniform distribution of V 2 O 5 nanosheets in CA, the special structure provides a large specific area and reactive sites. CA also synergistically improves the electrical conductivity and structural integrity. In addition, rich V 4 + would enhance the intrinsic electrical conductivity of V 2 O 5 , promote ion diffusion and catalyze the electrochemical reactions. Consequently, V 4+ −V 2 O 5 /CA exhibits much enhanced specific capacitance (405 F g −1 at 0.5 A g −1 ), high energy density (56 W h kg −1 with a power density of 250 W kg −1 ) and long cycle life (96% capacitance retention after 40,000 cycles).