Tailoring 3D Carbon Nanofiber Architectures for Enhanced Li⁺/PF₆⁻ Storage in Dual-Carbon Electrodes of High-Performance Lithium-Ion Capacitors

Abstract

Lithium-ion capacitors (LICs) are promising energy storage devices that combine the high energy density of lithium-ion batteries and the outstanding power density of supercapacitors. In this study, a dual-carbon LIC utilizing etched vertical graphene-grown carbon nanofibers (eVG@CNFs) as anode and etched hollow carbon nanofibers (ehCNFs) as cathode was presented. The eVG@CNFs feature mesoporous surfaces integrated with vertically aligned graphene sheets, enabling efficient Li⁺ insertion, diffusion, and adsorption for excellent capacity and rate performance. The ehCNFs, derived by carbonization of polymeric core–shell nanofibers, possess hollow nanochannels and an ultrahigh specific surface area of 2884.4 m² g⁻¹ with favorable porosity for PF₆⁻ adsorption. The eVG@CNF//ehCNF LIC operates over a wide operating voltage of 0.8–4.0 V and delivers a specific cell capacity of 47.9 mAh g⁻¹ at 30 A g⁻¹. The hybrid dual-carbon LIC achieves a maximum energy density of 268.5 Wh kg⁻¹ and maintains 115.0 Wh kg⁻¹ even at an ultrahigh power density of 72 kW kg⁻¹. Moreover, it shows great cycling stability, retaining over 84.4% capacitance after 12000 charge–discharge cycles. This work highlights the potential of tailored CNF architectures for high-performance energy storage applications.

Keywords

Lithium-ion capacitors / Carbon nanofibers / Vertical graphene / Porosity

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Funding

National Research Foundation of Korea(RS-2025-24533374)

Sungkyunkwan University

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