Porous Co3O4 nanowires derived from long Co(CO3)(0.5)(OH)·0.11H2O nanowires with improved supercapacitive properties.

Porous Co(3)O(4) nanowires with large aspect ratio have been obtained by annealing long Co(CO(3))(0.5)(OH)·0.11H(2)O precursor nanowires synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method. The results show that the amount of the additive (urea) has an important impact on the morphology of the as-synthesized cobalt-carbonate-hydroxide intermediate, where the uniformity and the overall structure can be controlled by changing the urea concentration. After the heat treatment, the as-obtained phase-pure Co(3)O(4) nanowires with a well retained structure are applied as the electrode material for supercapacitors, and the sample exhibits excellent performance with a high specific capacitance of 240 F g(-1) after 2000 charge/discharge cycles, corresponding to a retention of 98% of the initial capacitance. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2012