Electrochemical Energy Storage of Magnetic Carbon Nanocomposites: Role of Magnetocapacitance and Magnetohydrodynamics

Magnetic field has been used in different chemical processes to improve the quality of electrodeposited films, yield of photoredox products, and oxidative reactivity of catalysts and etc. In this work, a small external magnetic field will be imposed on a supercapacitor unit trying to improve its electrochemical energy density. Magnetic microtubular carbon nanocomposite fabrics decorated with uniformly distributed metal oxides (iron, cobalt and nickel oxides) nanoparticles will be fabricated via both microwave-assisted and conventional annealing processes. These fabrics could serve as flexible electrodes for supercapacitors to deliver high energy density and exhibit excellent cycling stability. The effect of metal oxide species, annealing method and applied magnetic field on the capacitance of each nanocomposite material will be tested using cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge/discharge measurements. The corresponding mechanism will be investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Cycling stability of each composite with and without magnetic field will be also comparatively studied.