The importance of electrode characterization to assess the supercapacitor performance of ordered mesoporous carbons

Carbon based-supercapacitors are widely used in numerous applications but the knowledge of the specific role of carbon features in their performance is still insufficient. The main aim of this work is to warn readers that the current interpretation of the device operation, mostly based on powdered carbon properties, may be misleading in certain cases and should be complemented with the physicochemical characterization of the corresponding electrodes. Ordered mesoporous carbons highly enriched in surface functionalities were prepared by carbonization of 3-aminobenzoic acid into SBA-15 template. These carbons achieved a specific capacitance as high as 220 F/g in 2 M H2SO4 aqueous electrolyte. The pseudocapacitance contribution ranged between 35 and 70% of the overall capacitance. It was shown that the structural and textural changes underwent by these advanced carbons during their processing in form of electrodes prevented the full exploitation of their outstanding properties for high-power applications. This makes a difference regarding conventional, disordered activated carbons, which virtually preserve their structure during electrode preparation.Financial support from the European Regional Development Fund and the Spanish MINECO (project MAT2011-26399) and the European Regional Develpment Fund and the Asturian Government (project GRUPIN14-056) are gratefully acknowledged.Peer reviewe