Hierarchical Ni(OH)2/Cu(OH)2 interwoven nanosheets in situ grown on Ni–Cu–P alloy plated cotton fabric for flexible high-performance energy storage

Flexible energy storage electrode with both high conductivity and capacity are crucial for wearable electronic clothes. Herein, a flexible hierarchical Ni(OH)2/Cu(OH)2 interwoven nanosheets in situ coated on Ni-Cu-P alloy plated cotton fabric textile (NCO-CF) is derived from the electroless deposition and electrochemical oxidation method, which displays perfect conductive and electrochemical performance. While the Ni-Cu-P alloy layer coated on the fabric effectively contributes to the excellent mechanical performance and electro-conductivity of the as-prepared electrode, the hierarchical Ni(OH)2/Cu(OH)2 interwoven nanosheets in the oxidation layer effectively conduce to a high energy storage performance, with a specific areal capacity of 4.7 C cm-2 at a current density of 2 mA cm-2. When the power density of the two-electrode system based on NCO-CF and the carbon cloth is 2.4 mW cm-2, the energy density is 1.38 mWh cm-2. Further, the flexible solid-state energy storage f-NCO-CF//CC is assembled in a self-powered system and supplies continuous power for electronic devices under with and then without sunlight irradiation, demonstrating NCO-CF is promising to be applied in energy storage devices to power various portable and wearable devices in the future.