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Research Article | | Peer-Reviewed

Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes

Xiaochen Sun*,  Chaocao Cao,  Limin Zhao,  Caixia Song,  Dan Sun
Published in American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems (Volume 15, Issue 2)
Received: 6 March 2026     Accepted: 18 March 2026     Published: 23 April 2026
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Abstract

In this work, Co3O4@C composite electrode materials were successfully fabricated by coating amorphous carbon on Co3O4 nanorods. Electrochemical tests demonstrated that the Co3O4@C composite exhibited superior electrochemical performance compared with pure Co3O4, including larger capacitive response, higher specific capacitance, and more excellent rate capability and cycle stability. Specifically, the Co3O4@C composite delivered specific capacitances of 924, 830, 752, and 680 F g-1 at current densities of 2, 5, 8, and 10 A g-1, respectively, retaining 73.6% of its initial capacitance when the current density was increased from 2 to 10 A g-1. After 2000 consecutive charge–discharge cycles, the capacitance retention of Co3O4@C reached 89.4%, which was higher than that of pure Co3O4 (85.3%). Moreover, the Co3O4@C composite possessed accelerated ion and electron transport kinetics compared with pure Co3O4. The enhanced electrochemical performance of Co3O4@C can be ascribed to the synergistic effect between Co3O4 and amorphous carbon, the improved electrical conductivity provided by the carbon component, and the protective role of the carbon layer in mitigating the agglomeration and structural degradation of Co3O4 during cycling. These findings suggest that the Co3O4@C composite is a promising electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors.

Published in American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems (Volume 15, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12
Page(s) 27-33
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group
Previous article
Keywords

Co3O4@C Composite, Amorphous Carbon, Supercapacitor, Electrode Material, Electrochemical Performance, Pseudocapacitance

1. Introduction
With the intensification of the global energy crisis and the deep implementation of the "dual-carbon" strategy, the development of efficient, eco-friendly, and low-cost energy storage technologies has become a cutting-edge focus of current scientific research. Lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors, as the main representatives of electrochemical energy storage devices, are also hotspots in current research
[1-7]
. Lithium-ion batteries are widely used in various fields owing to their high energy density and fast charge–discharge capability. However, their inherent drawbacks, such as a tendency to cause short circuits, high sensitivity to ambient temperature, and short cycle life, limit their application in fast-charging/discharging and high-power output devices
[8-13]
. In contrast, supercapacitors exhibit numerous advantages, including high power density, fast charge–discharge capability, ultra-long cycle life, high safety, and environmental friendliness, showing broad application prospects in new energy vehicles, smart grids, and other fields
[14-16]
.
Cobalt tetroxide (Co3O4) is regarded as a promising and extensively studied electrode material for supercapacitors due to its high theoretical specific capacitance, abundant redox reactivity, environmental friendliness, low cost, and simple preparation methods. In recent years, researchers have developed various Co3O4 nanostructures, including nanoparticles, nanofibers, microspheres, nanoboxes, nanocages, hollow spheres, and nanoneedles. Vijayakumar et al.
[17]
prepared cobalt oxide nanoparticles via a simple microwave method. The maximum specific capacitance obtained from charge–discharge tests was 519 F g-1, and the specific capacitance decreased by only approximately 1.3% after 1000 consecutive charge–discharge cycles.
Duan et al.
[18]
fabricated microporous Co3O4 powder using a low-cost microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition method. After 4000 cycles, the specific capacitance of the etched microporous Co3O4 powder reached 128 F g-1, which was 3.5 times that of the pristine powder. Chen et al.
[19]
developed a Co3O4 electrode with a flower-like nanoparticle three-level structure via a hydrothermal method followed by sintering. It exhibited excellent rate capability at current densities ranging from 0.5 to 40 A g-1, with a specific capacitance retention of 98.5% after 2000 charge–discharge cycles.
2. Experimental Section
2.1. Synthesis of Co3O4
Co(NO₃)₂·6H₂O (0.582 g), NH₄F (0.37 g), and CO(NH₂)₂ (0.6 g) were dissolved in 50 mL of deionized water to form a homogeneous solution. The mixture was then transferred into a Teflon-lined autoclave. The autoclave was placed in a reaction oven, gradually heated to 120°C, and maintained at this temperature for 5 h. After the reaction, the autoclave was naturally cooled to room temperature. The obtained product was washed several times with anhydrous ethanol and deionized water under ultrasonication to remove surface impurities, followed by drying in a vacuum oven at 60°C for 8 h. Finally, the as-prepared sample was annealed at 450°C for 2 h in air using a horizontal tube furnace.
2.2. Synthesis of Co3O4@C
A certain amount of sucrose and an appropriate volume of deionized water were weighed to prepare a 0.1 M sucrose solution. Co3O4 obtained from the previous reaction at 120°C for 4 hours was added into the sucrose solution, which was then transferred into a high-pressure autoclave. The autoclave was placed in a reaction chamber and reacted at 180°C for 12 hours. The resulting product was cleaned and dried sequentially. Subsequently, the obtained product was placed into a horizontal tube furnace, heated to 500°C at a heating rate of 5°C·min-1 under argon atmosphere, and held at this temperature for 2 hours to obtain the Co3O4@C composite.
2.3. Materials Characterizations
XRD data of the as-synthesized samples were obtained using an X-ray diffractometer (Bruker D2 PHASER) using Cu Ka radiation (λ = 0.1548 nm). The morphology and atomic content were characterized by eld emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM, ZEISS Sigma 300).
2.4. Electrochemical Measurements
All of the electrochemical measurements, including cyclic voltammetry (CV) tests and galvanostatic charge/discharge (GCD) as well as electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were carried out in 2 M KOH aqueous solution on a workstation (Princeton 4000A). A three-electrode conguration was adopted in the experiment, in which Hg/HgO and platinum foil were used as reference and counter electrodes, respectively. The conditions of EIS tests were as follows: alternating current voltage amplitude 5 mV and a frequency ranging from 0.01 to 1×105 Hz at open circuit potential.
3. Results and Discussion
Figure 1 shows the XRD pattern of the Co3O4@C composite formed by amorphous carbon coating on Co3O4. It can be observed from Figure 1 that the pattern clearly indicates the presence of Co3O4. The 2θ values at 31.2°, 36.8°, 59.4°, and 65.2° correspond to the (220), (311), (511), and (440) crystal planes of Co3O4, respectively, which can be attributed to the face-centered cubic (fcc) spinel phase of Co3O4 (JCPDS 43-1003). In addition, three strong diffraction peaks corresponding to the Ni foam substrate can also be observed in the pattern. However, no diffraction peaks of the carbon material are detected after carbon coating, which is closely related to the type of coated carbon. Since amorphous carbon is nearly non-crystalline with a very low degree of graphitization and crystallization, and is highly dispersed in the sample, no characteristic peaks appear in the XRD pattern. Nevertheless, its presence can be confirmed by combining other characterization techniques.
Figure 1. XRD patterns of as-prepared Co3O4@C nanobundles.
The Co3O4 sample was obtained by reaction at 120°C for 4 h, followed by annealing in air. To further investigate the morphology and structure of the Co3O4@C composite electrode material, Figure 2 presents SEM images at different magnifications. As observed in Figure 2(a), the sample exhibits a rhombic rod-like structure with regular arrangement. The morphology and size of Co3O4@C can be confirmed from the high-magnification SEM image (Figure 2(b)), in which the rhombic rod-like structures of Co3O4 are uniformly and densely distributed. The diameter of the nanorods is approximately 300 nm. Owing to the low crystallinity of the amorphous carbon, it shows no fixed morphology or periodic structural regularity.
Figure 2. SEM images of Co3O4@C: (a) and (b) different magnified SEM images of Co3O4@C nanobundles.
To further explore the electrochemical performance of cobalt-based materials, cyclic voltammetry (CV) tests were carried out on the electrodes, and the obtained CV curves are shown in Figure 3. The CV curves of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C were acquired at the same scan rate. By comparing the CV curves of the two electrode materials, it can be observed that the CV curve area of Co3O4@C is significantly larger than that of Co3O4, as presented in Figure 3(a). This indicates that after carbon coating, Co3O4@C exhibits superior capacitive properties. This is not only because a synergistic effect can be formed between Co3O4 and the carbon material, but also because the carbon phase contributes a portion of the capacitance. Figure 3(b) displays the CV curves of Co3O4@C within a potential window of 0–0.5 V at scan rates ranging from 20 to 60 mV s-1. As the scan rate increases, the area of the CV curves gradually enlarges. Distinct redox peaks appear in the CV profiles, which are quite different from the nearly rectangular shape typical of electric double-layer capacitance. This demonstrates that the measured capacitance is pseudocapacitance, whose behavior is not mainly provided by electrochemical double-layer charging, but primarily originates from redox reactions occurring at the electrode. With increasing scan rate, the redox current density increases accordingly; the anodic peak shifts toward a higher potential, while the cathodic peak moves toward a lower potential. These results clearly prove that the redox process in Co3O4@C for capacitive energy storage possesses quasi-reversible characteristics.
Figure 3. CV curves of diamond-shaped rod structure Co3O4 and Co3O4@C: (a) CV curves of Co3O4 nanorods and Co3O4@C nanorods at at a certain scan rate of 30 mV s-1; (b) CV curves of Co3O4@C nanorods at different scan rates (20-60 mV s-1).
Galvanostatic charge–discharge (GCD) testing is an important technique for evaluating the electrochemical performance of supercapacitors. The GCD curves of the Co3O4@C electrode are presented in Figure 4.
At the same current density, the discharge time of the Co3O4@C electrode is longer than that of the Co3O4 electrode, as shown in Figure 4(a), further demonstrating the excellent charge storage capability of the Co3O4@C composite electrode. However, the discharge time of the electrode is not prolonged significantly, resulting in an unobvious improvement in the specific capacitance of the composite material. This is because the theoretical specific capacitance of carbon materials is relatively low, and coating with amorphous carbon cannot obviously enhance the specific capacitance. It can be seen from the charge–discharge curve of Co₃O4@C in Figure 4(a) that there is a clear distinction below approximately 0.2 V and in the range of 0.2–0.5 V. The potential–time curve below 0.2 V is nearly parallel to the potential axis, revealing electric double-layer capacitive behavior caused by charge separation at the electrode/electrolyte interface. On the other hand, an obvious inclined curve (0.2–0.5 V) appears, representing typical pseudocapacitive characteristics, which may be related to two factors: one is electrochemical adsorption/desorption, and the other is redox reactions occurring at the electrode/electrolyte interface. Figure 4(b) shows the GCD curves of Co3O4@C at current densities of 2, 5, 8, and 10 A g-1 within a potential window of 0–0.5 V. The capacitance of all samples decreases with increasing discharge current density, which can be attributed to the tortuous diffusion of OH⁻ ions inside the pores of the electrode material and the electrode resistance. At low discharge current densities, both the inner and outer surfaces of the electrode material contribute to capacitive energy storage. In contrast, at high discharge current densities, ion diffusion during electrochemical reactions only occurs on the outer surface of the electrode material, while reactions on the inner surface are insufficient, leading to a low utilization efficiency of the active material.
Figure 4. GCD curves of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C: (a) at a certain current density of 5 A g-1; (b) GCD curves of Co3O4@C at different current densities.
The rate capability and cycling performance of Co3O4@C were further investigated, and the results are displayed in Figure 5. As shown in Figure 5(a), the specific capacitances of the Co3O4@C electrode at current densities of 2, 5, 8, and 10 A g-1 are 924, 830, 752, and 680 F g-1, respectively. The specific capacitance is maximized at low current densities because OH⁻ ions migrate more actively on the electrode surface at low current densities, whereas diffusion limitations restrict the movement of OH⁻ ions at high current densities, resulting in reduced capacitance. The relatively high content of amorphous carbon in Co₃O4@C may stabilize Co3O4 during charge–discharge cycling. After increasing the current density from 2 A g-1 to 10 A g-1, the capacitance retention of Co3O4@C is 73.6%. To further verify that Co3O4@C can serve as an electrode material for supercapacitors, its cycling stability was tested. As shown in Figure 5(b), after 2000 charge–discharge cycles, Co3O4@C still exhibits high capacitive energy storage efficiency, with a capacitance retention of 89.4%, which is higher than that of Co3O4 (85.3%). Therefore, the enhanced performance of Co3O4@C can be attributed to three factors: the carbon layer coated on the Co3O4 surface, which effectively suppresses the agglomeration and degradation of Co3O4 during cycling; the synergistic effect between Co3O4 and amorphous carbon; and the improved electrical conductivity of the composite due to the high carbon content.
Figure 5. Electrochemical performance of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C: (a) Specific capacitances at different current densities of Co3O4@C; (b) cycling stability of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C for 2000 cycles at 8 A g-1.
Figure 6. Electrochemical impedance of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C: (a) Nyquist plots of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C; (b) high frequency region Nyquist plots of Co3O4 and Co3O4@C; (c) the simulated circuit diagram of Co3O4@C.
To further understand the electrochemical characteristics of the Co3O4@C electrode material, where high specific capacitance and low resistance are preferred properties for pseudocapacitive electrode materials, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was employed to further characterize the electrochemical performance of the sample. Figure 6(a) shows the Nyquist plot of the Co3O4@C electrode. The intercept of the semicircle in the high-frequency region on the Z'-axis represents the internal resistance Rs. The diameter of the semicircle in the high-frequency region corresponds to the charge-transfer resistance Rct, which is related to the electroactive surface area of the electrode; the diameter of the semicircle reflects the magnitude of Rct. As observed in Figure 6(b), the semicircle diameter of the Co3O4@C electrode in the high-frequency region is smaller than that of pure Co3O4, indicating that Co3O4@C possesses a lower Rct value. This charge-transfer resistance is associated with the Faradaic redox reactions of the Co3O4 electrode material, which involve the exchange of OH⁻ ions. After carbon coating, the charge-transfer rate is accelerated, leading to a significant improvement in electrochemical performance. Figure 6(c) presents the equivalent circuit model employed for fitting the EIS data of Co3O4@C. The fitted values of Rs and Rct are determined to be 0.51 Ω and 1.55 Ω for Co3O4@C, respectively, whereas those of pure Co3O4 are 1.23 Ω and 2.58 Ω. The lower Rs value of the Co3O4C electrode originates from the intrinsic resistance of the electrode material and its interfacial contact with the electrolyte. Meanwhile, the significantly reduced Rct value of Co3O4@C is mainly attributed to the strong interfacial interaction between amorphous carbon and Co3O4 nanobundles, which effectively accelerates interfacial charge transfer and improves the overall electronic conductivity of the electrode.
4. Conclusion
In summary, amorphous carbon-coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) composite electrode materials were successfully synthesized and comprehensively characterized. Structural and morphological analyses confirmed the formation of pure spinel-phase Co3O4 with a regular rhombic rod-like structure, while the coated carbon existed in an amorphous state. Electrochemical investigations demonstrated that the introduction of amorphous carbon effectively enhanced the capacitive performance of Co3O4. Compared with pure Co3O4, the Co3O4@C composite exhibited larger CV curve areas, longer discharge durations, higher specific capacitance, superior rate capability, and improved cycling stability. Notably, the Co3O4@C composite maintained a high capacitance retention of 89.4% after 2000 charge–discharge cycles and displayed excellent rate performance with a capacitance retention of 73.6% as the current density increased from 2 to 10 A g-1. EIS results further confirmed that the carbon coating significantly reduced the charge-transfer resistance and improved the electrical conductivity of the composite. The enhanced electrochemical properties of Co3O4@C are primarily attributed to three factors: the synergistic interaction between Co3O4 and amorphous carbon, the improved electrical conductivity provided by the carbon component, and the protective effect of the carbon layer against the agglomeration and structural collapse of Co3O4 during repeated charge–discharge processes. This study demonstrates that the Co3O4@C composite possesses excellent electrochemical performance and holds great potential as an advanced electrode material for supercapacitor applications.
Abbreviations

Co3O4

Cobalt Tetroxide

XRD

X-ray Diffractometer

SEM

Scanning Electron Microscopy

CV

Cyclic Voltammetry

GCD

Galvanostatic Charge/Discharge

EIS

Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy
Author Contributions
Xiaochen Sun: Conceptualization, Resources, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing
Chaocao Cao: Data curation, Investigation
Limin Zhao: Formal Analysis
Caixia Song: Validation
Dan Sun: Visualization
Conflicts of Interest
There are no conflicts to declare.
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    Sun, X., Cao, C., Zhao, L., Song, C., Sun, D. (2026). Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes. American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems, 15(2), 27-33. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12

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    Sun, X.; Cao, C.; Zhao, L.; Song, C.; Sun, D. Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes. Am. J. Electr. Power Energy Syst. 2026, 15(2), 27-33. doi: 10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12

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    AMA Style

    Sun X, Cao C, Zhao L, Song C, Sun D. Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes. Am J Electr Power Energy Syst. 2026;15(2):27-33. doi: 10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12,
  author = {Xiaochen Sun and Chaocao Cao and Limin Zhao and Caixia Song and Dan Sun},
  title = {Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes},
  journal = {American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems},
  volume = {15},
  number = {2},
  pages = {27-33},
  doi = {10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.epes.20261502.12},
  abstract = {In this work, Co3O4@C composite electrode materials were successfully fabricated by coating amorphous carbon on Co3O4 nanorods. Electrochemical tests demonstrated that the Co3O4@C composite exhibited superior electrochemical performance compared with pure Co3O4, including larger capacitive response, higher specific capacitance, and more excellent rate capability and cycle stability. Specifically, the Co3O4@C composite delivered specific capacitances of 924, 830, 752, and 680 F g-1 at current densities of 2, 5, 8, and 10 A g-1, respectively, retaining 73.6% of its initial capacitance when the current density was increased from 2 to 10 A g-1. After 2000 consecutive charge–discharge cycles, the capacitance retention of Co3O4@C reached 89.4%, which was higher than that of pure Co3O4 (85.3%). Moreover, the Co3O4@C composite possessed accelerated ion and electron transport kinetics compared with pure Co3O4. The enhanced electrochemical performance of Co3O4@C can be ascribed to the synergistic effect between Co3O4 and amorphous carbon, the improved electrical conductivity provided by the carbon component, and the protective role of the carbon layer in mitigating the agglomeration and structural degradation of Co3O4 during cycling. These findings suggest that the Co3O4@C composite is a promising electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors.},
 year = {2026}
}

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  • TY  - JOUR
T1  - Fabrication of Amorphous Carbon-Coated Co3O4 (Co3O4@C) Composite and Its Enhanced Electrochemical Performance for Supercapacitor Electrodes
AU  - Xiaochen Sun
AU  - Chaocao Cao
AU  - Limin Zhao
AU  - Caixia Song
AU  - Dan Sun
Y1  - 2026/04/23
PY  - 2026
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12
T2  - American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems
JF  - American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems
JO  - American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems
SP  - 27
EP  - 33
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2326-9200
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.epes.20261502.12
AB  - In this work, Co3O4@C composite electrode materials were successfully fabricated by coating amorphous carbon on Co3O4 nanorods. Electrochemical tests demonstrated that the Co3O4@C composite exhibited superior electrochemical performance compared with pure Co3O4, including larger capacitive response, higher specific capacitance, and more excellent rate capability and cycle stability. Specifically, the Co3O4@C composite delivered specific capacitances of 924, 830, 752, and 680 F g-1 at current densities of 2, 5, 8, and 10 A g-1, respectively, retaining 73.6% of its initial capacitance when the current density was increased from 2 to 10 A g-1. After 2000 consecutive charge–discharge cycles, the capacitance retention of Co3O4@C reached 89.4%, which was higher than that of pure Co3O4 (85.3%). Moreover, the Co3O4@C composite possessed accelerated ion and electron transport kinetics compared with pure Co3O4. The enhanced electrochemical performance of Co3O4@C can be ascribed to the synergistic effect between Co3O4 and amorphous carbon, the improved electrical conductivity provided by the carbon component, and the protective role of the carbon layer in mitigating the agglomeration and structural degradation of Co3O4 during cycling. These findings suggest that the Co3O4@C composite is a promising electrode material for high-performance supercapacitors.
VL  - 15
IS  - 2
ER  -

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