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Confined growth of Li4Ti5O12 nanoparticles in nitrogen-doped mesoporous graphene fibers for high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes

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Abstract

Nanomaterials with electrochemical activity are always suffering from aggregations, particularly during the high-temperature synthesis processes, which will lead to decreased energy-storage performance. Here, hierarchically structured lithium titanate/nitrogen-doped porous graphene fiber nanocomposites were synthesized by using confined growth of Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) nanoparticles in nitrogen-doped mesoporous graphene fibers (NPGF). NPGFs with uniform pore structure are used as templates for hosting LTO precursors, followed by high-temperature treatment at 800 °C under argon (Ar). LTO nanoparticles with size of several nanometers are successfully synthesized in the mesopores of NPGFs, forming nanostructured LTO/NPGF composite fibers. As an anode material for lithium-ion batteries, such nanocomposite architecture offers effective electron and ion transport, and robust structure. Such nanocomposites in the electrodes delivered a high reversible capacity (164 mAh·g–1 at 0.3 C), excellent rate capability (102 mAh·g–1 at 10 C), and long cycling stability.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Heavy Oil Processing, China University of Petroleum, Beijing, 102249, China

    Xilai Jia

  2. Beijing Key Laboratory of Green Chemical Reaction Engineering and Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Fei Wei

  3. Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA

    Yunfeng Lu

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  1. Xilai Jia
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  2. Yunfeng Lu
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  3. Fei Wei
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Correspondence to Yunfeng Lu or Fei Wei.

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Jia, X., Lu, Y. & Wei, F. Confined growth of Li4Ti5O12 nanoparticles in nitrogen-doped mesoporous graphene fibers for high-performance lithium-ion battery anodes. Nano Res. 9, 230–239 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1001-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-016-1001-5

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