Improved cyclability of lithium-ion battery anode using encapsulated V2O3 nanostructures in well-graphitized carbon fiber

• Main Authors: Wang, Yu, Zhang, Huijuan, Admar, Agita Sesara, Luo, Jizhong, Wong, Chee Cheong, Borgna, Armando, Lin, Jianyi
• Other Authors: School of Materials Science & Engineering
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2013
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/97276; http://hdl.handle.net/10220/10535
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

A novel one-dimensional (1D) V2O3@carbon nanocomposite has been successfully synthesized for the first time. In the synthesis procedure, the previously obtained V2O5·xH2O nanobelts act as template. By coating the nanobelts with a layer of polymerized C species under hydrothermal conditions followed by a calcination treatment at elevated temperature in an inert atmosphere, the V2O3@carbon nanocomposite was finally obtained. This nanocomposite consists of a well-graphitized carbon layer encapsulating the V2O3 nanostructures. The as-synthesized V2O3@carbon nanocomposite exhibits improved electrochemical performance in Li-ion batteries as the anode, showing enhanced stability, reversibility and cyclability in long-term cycles. At least a 98.5% capacity retention (660 mAh g−1) was observed after high-rate galvanostatic measurements (250 cycles). These results indicate that the V2O3@carbon nanocomposite is a promising candidate as an anode material for next generation Li-ion batteries. In addition, this nanocomposite may also be a promising material for other important applications such as supercapacitors.