The role of garcinia kola fruit pulp extract phyto-mediation in fine-tuning Ti3C2Tx/CoS2/MnS2 electrodes for supercapacitor application

The unique features of two-dimensional (2D) layered materials make them appropriate electrode materials for electrochemical energy storage systems but their tendency to restack and the use of harsh synthesis routes limit practical application. To address this, green synthesis and electrochemical performance of Ti 3 C 2 /CoS 2 /MnS 2 (TCMS) nanoparticles using garcinia kola fruit pulp (GKFP) extract as a phyto-mediating agent are reported herein. The GKFP extract enables sustainable synthesis route, reduces Ti 3 C 2 restacking and suppresses excessive CoS 2 /MnS 2 (CMS) agglomeration boosting the CMS intercalation. The structural, morphological, and optical properties of the electrodes were investigated via XRD, SEM, EDS, BET and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The results show that GKFP extract ions' phyto-mediation boosted the interlayer distance from 10.2 Å to 17.6 Å, increased the surface area, causing the Ti 3 C 2 T x @Al MXene interlayers to grow larger and accommodate more CoS 2 /MnS 2 nanoparticles with less restacking. The FTIR results show the functional group for each sample while BET surface analysis showed that TCMS 2 has the highest surface area of 106.0 m2/g and pore size of 3.9 nm. The band gap decreased from 2.82 to 2.03 eV upon the use of GKFP extract. TCMS 2 recorded specific capacitance of 1879.5 F/g at 1.0 A/g and upon completion of 5,000 cycles, exhibiting outstanding cycling performance with 92.6% in 1.0 M of KOH. The EIS spectra validate a quicker electron transfer rate for samples synthesized with GKFP extract at 0.25g/ml concentration indicating that it greatly boosted the intercalation of CMS and increased the synergistic effect among basic ions by sinking electrodes resistance and increasing electrodes conductivity for better electrochemical performance, hence a promising material for supercapacitor • Hierarchical Ti 3 C 2 T x /CoS 2 /MnS 2 composite was synthesized • Garcinia kola fruit pulp (GKFP) extract serves as a reducing agent and antioxidant for the synthesis. • GKFP extract was employed to boost CoS 2 /MnS 2 intercalation into MXene conductive frame • The GKFP boosted Ti 3 C 2 T x /CoS 2 /MnS 2 composite shows capacitance of 1879.5 F/g at 1.0 A/g compared to 1000.2 F/g of the unboosted composite