Mulberry-paper-based electrodes with hybrid nanocomposite coatings and their application to eco-friendly energy-storage devices

With the increasing demand for flexible energy-storage systems, mulberry paper has emerged as a suitable flexible substrate because its mechanical strength and chemical stability surpass that of A4 commercial printing papers. Mulberry paper can withstand deformation because of its high holocellulose content and low lignin content. Moreover, it is hydrophilic, which is advantageous for a simple dip-coating process. Herein, we propose a hybrid nanocomposite-coated mulberry paper, synthesized by dip-coating, as an electrode for flexible energy-storage devices. The electrode was successively coated with silver nanowires (AgNWs), carbon nanotubes, and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate. The synergetic effect of the electric double-layer and pseudocapacitive materials as well as AgNWs, is to act as a current collector and increases conductivity, resulting in a gravimetric energy density of 14.64 W h kg-1 and gravimetric power density of 2.69 kW kg-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1. This paper focuses on the fabrication of mulberry-paper-based electrodes with hybrid nanocomposite coatings and presents the electrochemical performance of the as-fabricated electrodes. These electrodes can be used in eco-friendly energy-storage devices because of the superiority of mulberry paper over commercial printing paper.