Abstract:
Transition metal sulfides (TMSs) have emerged as attractive electrode materials for supercapacitors due to their high theoretical specific capacity. However, their practical electrochemical performance is often hindered by inadequate electronic conductivity, slow ion diffusion kinetics, and structural degradation during cycling, leading to unsatisfactory activity and stability. To address these challenges, a novel hollow spherical MnCo
2S
4 was synthesized using CoMn-glycolate (CoMn-Gly) microspheres as templates then electrostatically assembled with MXene nanosheets into a hierarchical MnCo
2S
4/MXene composite. Owing to the special chemical components and microstructure, the composite exhibits a specific capacity of 287.7 mA·h·g
−1 (
2071.4 F·g
−1) at 1 A·g
−1, with 70% capacity retention at 20 A·g
−1. The MnCo
2S
4/MXene//PC (PC means porous carbon) device achieves a high energy density of 81.9 Wh·kg
−1 at 374.96 W·kg
−1. Notably, even at an ultra-high power density of 15 kW·kg
−1, the energy density remains at 30.8 Wh·kg
−1. Additionally, the composite exhibits excellent cycling stability, retaining 87.2% of its initial capacity after 10,000 cycles at 5 A·g
−1. These findings highlight the critical role of multicomponent synergism (dual metals, sulfur, and MXene) and hierarchical architecture in optimizing TMSs for supercapacitors, providing a viable strategy for designing high-performance electrode materials.