Preparation of polyaniline/cellulose composites assisted with supercritical CO2

In this paper, with cellulose microsphere as the substrate, a polyaniline/cellulose composite was prepared by means of in situ polymerization in supercritical CO 2 (SCCO 2 ) environment, and the effect of experimental pressure, temperature, and reaction time on the morphology and electrochemical properties of the composite were explored. In addition, the electrochemical properties of the composite were compared with the one prepared under normal temperature and pressure condition (NPT). The results show that the polymerization time of aniline in SCCO 2 is greatly shortened comparing with chemical oxidation of 6 h, and the capacitance of the composite prepared in SCCO 2 can reach 391 F·g −1 at the scanning rate of 5 mV·s −1 , which is higher than 286 F·g −1 under NPT. After 300 charge–discharge cycles, the capacitance retention of the composite prepared in SCCO 2 and NPT are 91% and 83%, respectively. The stability of the composite material prepared in SCCO 2 is significantly improved. Graphical abstract