The Experiment

The scientists transformed the toxic and non-biodegradable fibers of the cigarette butts into a carbon-based material using a one-step burning technique called pyrolysis. Burning the fibers in the presence of nitrogen results in a carbon-based material filled with tiny pores. These pores make it a better supercapacitive material by increasing the surface area. A combination of different pore sizes further ensures that the material can have high energy densities.