MnO2 Nanowires Electrodeposited in a Porous Network of Agarose Gel as a Pseudocapacitor Electrode

Despite a simple preparation of manganese oxide (MnO₂) nanowires by electrodeposition, the improvement in specific capacitance (C_sp) and voltammetric response of the MnO₂ nanowire-based electrodes has been quite limited. This is attributed to the poor electrical conductivity of MnO₂ and its dense bulk morphology due to the aggregation of the nanowires. This study investigated the capacitive performance of MnO₂ nanowires electrodeposited on agarose thin films. The good ionic conductivity and porous network of the agarose film provided favorable growth conditions for the MnO₂ nanowires with suppressed aggregation. A maximum C_sp value of 686 F/g measured at a scan rate of 10 mV/s was obtained, which was significantly larger than that of 314 F/g for the agarose-free MnO₂ electrode at the same scan rate. The rate capability was also improved. The C_sp measured at a high scan rate of 100 mV/s retained 74.0% of the value measured at 10 mV/s, superior to the retention of 71.1% for the agarose-free MnO₂ electrode.