FacileWater/Ionic Liquid/Organic Triphase Interfacial Synthesis of Coral-Like Polyaniline toward High-Performance Electrochemical Capacitors

Facile water/ionic liquid/organic triphase interfacial strategy was first proposed to controllably synthesize coral-like polyaniline (PANI) with emanative protuberances on its surface toward high-performance electrochemical capacitor. The ionic liquid layer set between water/organic phases played a great role of "buffering zone" in the controllable polymerization of the PANI, enhanced the polymerization yield of the PANI, and significantly influenced the morphologies and microstructure of the PANI samples. Electrochemical studies demonstrated that the coral-like PANI synthesized by triphase interfacial route possesses even better electrochemical performance than that by simple biphasic interface, due to its unique structure, more desirable electronic conductivity and larger specific surface area. Furthermore, the strategy we proposed here opens a universal and facile way to synthesize other polymers and their composites, or even inorganic/organic hybrids with good electrochemical performance for energy storage. (C) 2012 The Electrochemical Society. [DOI: 10.1149/2.083208jes] All rights reserved.