The Effect of Graphite as an Electrode Material towards Supercapacitor Discharging Time

Abstract

This study aimed to 1) make a graphite-based supercapacitor, 2) characterize the graphite prepared, and 3) determine the effect of graphite mass as an electrode material towards the supercapacitor discharging time. This study consisted of three stages, namely: i) preparation of the graphite-based electrode material, ii) characterization of the graphite prepared, and iii) measurement of the supercapacitor discharging time with varying graphite mass. The characterizations of the graphite were carried out using an ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrophotometer, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and particle size analyzer (PSA). The electrode material is made of graphite, epoxy, and aquadest. Variations were made on the graphite mass deposited on the aluminum plate, namely, 1 g, 2 g, 4 g, 6 g, 8 g, and 0 g as a negative control. The results showed that the graphite was well deposited on the aluminum plate. The results of the UV-Vis characterization indicated that the graphite had an absorption peak at a wavelength of 301 nm. The XRD test showed the crystalline structure of the graphite with a sharp peak at 2q of 26^o. The PSA test showed that the dominant particle size distribution was 687 nm. The capacitors were given a voltage of 6 V for 1 minute. The measurement results showed that the discharging time increased as the amount of deposited graphite mass was increased. The electrode material with a mass of 8 g showed the longest discharging time, which was 12,000 seconds. The capacitors that were not deposited with graphite showed the shortest discharge time of 48 seconds after the power supply voltage was released.