Publication: Microwave-annealed v₂o₅ for zinc-ion hybrid supercapacitors
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Date
2025-08-01
Authors
Adrian, Tan An Xian
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Abstract
The development of high capacity and cost-effective energy storage systems is crucial and zinc-ion hybrid supercapacitors (ZHSCs) represent a promising candidate of energy storage system that fills the gap between conventional batteries and capacitors. However, cathode material is a limiting factor towards ZHSC performance. Hence, this study is to investigate the feasibility of microwave annealing in enhancing Vanadium Pentoxide (V2O5) properties as cathode material. The traditional methods to improve crystallinity is by high-temperature annealing but it is energy-intensive and prone to particle agglomeration. Therefore, utilizing microwave annealing which is fast and energy efficient is a better alternative. Microwave annealing of V2O5 powder at 800 W was carried out over duration between 0 to 15 minutes. The physical characterization shows that crystallinity improvement and smallest crystallite size (23.81 nm) was achieved after annealing for 5 minutes with morphology changed from nanorod to a unique hybrid structure of fused particles. The electrochemical tests were
conducted on both pristine and 5-minute microwave annealed V2O5 where performance of 5-minute microwave annealed V2O5 was better with higher specific
capacitance (454.4 Fg-1), specific capacity (113.6 mAhg-1), energy density (97.2 Whkg-1), and maintaining a comparable power density (855.6 Wkg⁻¹) compared to commercial pristine V2O5. These results suggest that 5-minute microwave annealing process can significantly enhance the structure and electrochemical properties of V2O5, making it a promising cathode material for ZHSCs.