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Synchronous constructing ion channels and confined space of Co3O4 anode for high-performance lithium-ion batteries

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Abstract

The yolk-shell structure has a unique advantage in lithium-ion batteries applications due to its ability to effectively buffer the volume expansion of the lithiation/delithiation process. However, its development is limited by the low contact point between the core and shell. Herein, we propose a general strategy of simultaneous construction of sufficient reserved space and multi-continuous active channels by pyrolysis of two carbon substrates. A double-shell structure consisting of Co3O4 anchored to hollow carbon sphere and external self-supporting zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF) layer was constructed by spray pyrolysis and additional carbon coating in-situ growth. In the process of high-temperature calcination, the carbon and nitrogen layers between the shells separate, creating additional space, while the Co3O4 particles between the shells remain are still in close contact to form continuous and fast electron conduction channels, which can realize better charge transfer. Due to the synergy of these design principles, the material has ultra-high initial discharge capacities of 2,183.1 mAh·g−1 at 0.2 A·g−1 with capacity of 1,121.36 mAh·g−1 after 250 cycles, the long-term capacities retention rate is about 92.4% after 700 cycles at 1 A·g−1. This unique channel-type double-shell structure fights a way out to prepare novel electrode materials with high performance.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21871005 and 22171005), the Program for Innovative Research Team of Anhui Education Committee, the Project for Collaborative Innovation of Anhui Higher Education Institutes (Nos. GXXT-2020-005, GXXT-2021-012, and GXXT-2021-013), the Natural Science Foundation of the Education Department of Anhui Province (No. KJ2020A0075), and the Foundation of the Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Clean Energy Materials and Chemistry for Sustainable Conversion of Natural Resources (No. LCECSC-10).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Chemistry and Materials Science, The Key Laboratory of Electrochemical Clean Energy of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory for New-Energy Vehicle Battery Energy-Storage Materials, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241002, China

    Yan Zhou, Chao Wang, Feiran Chen, Tingjuan Wang, Yaoyao Ni, Hongxia Sun, Nan Yu & Baoyou Geng

  2. Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, Hefei, 230031, China

    Baoyou Geng

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  1. Yan Zhou
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  2. Chao Wang
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Correspondence to Baoyou Geng.

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Zhou, Y., Wang, C., Chen, F. et al. Synchronous constructing ion channels and confined space of Co3O4 anode for high-performance lithium-ion batteries. Nano Res. 15, 6192–6199 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-022-4281-y

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