Centrifugally Spun α-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/TiO<sub>2</sub>/Carbon Composite Fibers as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

oleh: Luis Zuniga, Gabriel Gonzalez, Roberto Orrostieta Chavez, Jason C. Myers, Timothy P. Lodge, Mataz Alcoutlabi

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2019-09-01

Deskripsi

We report results on the electrochemical performance of flexible and binder-free &#945;-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/TiO<sub>2</sub>/carbon composite fiber anodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The composite fibers were produced via centrifugal spinning and subsequent thermal processing. The fibers were prepared from a precursor solution containing PVP/iron (III) acetylacetonate/titanium (IV) butoxide/ethanol/acetic acid followed by oxidation at 200 &#176;C in air and then carbonization at 550 &#176;C under flowing argon. The morphology and structure of the composite fibers were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These ternary composite fiber anodes showed an improved electrochemical performance compared to the pristine TiO<sub>2</sub>/C and &#945;-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/C composite fiber electrodes. The &#945;-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/TiO<sub>2</sub>/C composite fibers also showed a superior cycling performance with a specific capacity of 340 mAh g<sup>&#8722;1</sup> after 100 cycles at a current density of 100 mA g<sup>&#8722;1</sup>, compared to 61 mAh g<sup>&#8722;1</sup> and 121 mAh g<sup>&#8722;1</sup> for TiO<sub>2</sub>/C and &#945;-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/C composite electrodes, respectively. The improved electrochemical performance and the simple processing of these metal oxide/carbon composite fibers make them promising candidates for the next generation and cost-effective flexible binder-free anodes for LIBs.