Abstract:
Biomass-based porous Carbon electrodes have been widely used as a basic
material for producing supercapacitor cell electrodes, because its application can
be applied in the long term, sustainable, renewable, easy to find and has economic
value. This research used biomass Guinea grass (RG) with ZnCl2 molarity
variations of 0.1 M, 0.3 M, and 0.5 M as carbon electrodes for supercapacitor
cells. The process of synthesizing supercapacitor cell electrodes is through several
stages a pre-Carbonization at 200°C, chemical activation, Carbonization with N2
gas at temperature of 800°C and physical activation with CO2 gas at temperature
900°C. The highest density shrinkage value is owned by the RG-05 sample is
60.92%. Analysis Fourier Transform Infra Red showed that the active Carbon of
Guinea grass contained the functional groups O-H, C=O, C-O, C≡C and C-H. XRay
Diffraction analysis shows that there are two peaks at an angle of 2θ angles of
24o and 44o at scattering fields (002) and (100) which identify amorphous
characteristics. Analysis Scanning Electron Microscopy showed the formation of
porous Carbon electrodes with nanosheet and nanofiber structures. Analysis
Energy Dispersive X-Ray showed that the RG-05 sample produced the largest
percentage of Carbon at 88.01% of the three samples. Electrochemical analysis of
supercapacitor cells using the Cyclic Voltametry and Galvanostatic Charge-
Discharge methods with 1 M H2SO4 electrolyte, shows the highest specific
capacitance values were owned by the RG-05 sample of 487 Fg-1 and 495 Fg-1. In
conclusion the biomass derived from Guinea grass (RG), which is underutilized
and wasted, has the potential to use as a porous Carbon electrode for highperformance
supercapacitor cell applications.
