Polyacetylene carbon materials: facile preparation using AlCl3 catalyst and excellent electrochemical performance for supercapacitors

Polyacetylene (PA) was synthesized for the first time under mild conditions via polymerization of acetylene in n-octane with AlCl3 as a catalyst, whereby a series of PA-derived carbon materials were obtained. Their composition and structure were characterized and their electrochemical performance was evaluated systematically. It is found that acetylene gas at 1 MPa can polymerize explosively at room temperature under catalysis of AlCl3, forming acetylene black-like PA and a great amount of H2, while in the presence of n-octane solvent, acetylene polymerizes smoothly at higher temperature (30 to 300 °C), forming PA with a H(CHCH)nH structure. A series of PA-derived carbon materials are obtained by treating PA with KOH at 800 °C. The as-synthesizzed PA-100–KOH exhibits a high specific surface area (∼2500 m2 g−1), high specific capacitance (241 F g−1 at a current density of 0.1 A g−1 and 143 F g−1 at 5 A g−1), low AC resistance, and good cycling stability with 91.7% maintenance of capacity after 2000 cycles at a current density of 2 A g−1. This paper provides a new method for the facile synthesis of PA and a novel carbon source for supercapacitor electrode materials with excellent electrochemical performance and practical application.