Electrochemical Measurements: Modification of capacitive charge storage of TiO2 with nickel doping

Syam G. Krishnan, P.S. Archana, Baiju Vidyadharan, Izan Izwan Misnon, Bincy Lathakumary Vijayan, V. Manikantan Nair, Arunava Gupta, Rajan Jose

Supercapacitors with high energy density, power density, and long cycle life can be realised by utilising low-cost and ecologically friendly materials for practical implementation. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is prevalent in the earth’s crust, yet, supercapacitive electrochemical characteristics in most electrolytes are insufficient for practical deployment. Electrochemical measurements are done in an electrochemical cell, consisting of two or more electrodes and electrical circuitry to control and measure current and potential. This section introduces the fundamental elements of electrochemical instrumentation. In this study, we show that nickel doped TiO2 (Ni: TiO2) nanowires produced by electrospinning have a capacitance five times greater (200 F g1) than the undoped equivalent (40 F g1). Electrochemical experiments demonstrate that the Ni: TiO2 nanowires have a Coulombic efficiency of one hundred per cent. For over 5000 cycles, the electrodes showed no noticeable capacitance deterioration. The Ni: enhanced TiO2’s charge storage capacity can be attributed to its high electrical conductivity, which resulted in five orders of magnitude greater ion diffusion as measured by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical measurements spectroscopy.

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