Electrochemical performance of N‐doped superporous activated carbons in ionic liquid‐based electrolytes

Abstract The electrochemical performance of nitrogen-doped and non-doped superporous activated carbons as electrodes for supercapacitors was assessed in organic and ionic liquid-based electrolytes. The nitrogen functionalization was carried out through post-modification treatments at mild conditions to produce N-doped activated carbons that preserve the microporosity of the pristine carbon material. The electrodes based on these materials provide large capacitance values (up to 150–180 F/g) in both 1 M Pyr14TFSI/PC and 1 M Pyr14BF4/PC due to their tailored porous texture, given by their well-developed microporosity and low mesopore volume. The electrochemical double layer capacitors based on these materials displayed outstanding capacitance (37–40 F/g and 14 F/cm3) and energy values (44–48 Wh/kg and 16–17 Wh/L). The nitrogen-doped activated carbons evidence high stability at positive and negative polarization potentials due the presence of specific N functionalities. The results prove that surface chemistry of carbon materials plays a key role on their degradation under high operation voltage conditions. The durability of the devices can be improved by doping carbon electrodes with selected nitrogen groups, such as nitrogen heterocycles and amine-like surface functionalities.