Carbon-Encapsulated SnO2 Core Shell Nanowires Directly Grown on Reduced Graphene Oxide Sheets for High-Performance Li-Ion Battery Electrodes

Abstract

A designed electrode material of carbon-encapsulated tin dioxide core-shell nanowires that are synthesized directly on reduced graphene oxide substrates is reported, and its application as a positive electrode material for lithium-ion battery is shown. Each of the individual tin dioxide nanowires is wrapped with carbon shell layers and grown on a reduced graphene oxide substrate, which gives rise to structural benefits for electrochemical performance of the lithium-ion battery. Such carbon structures allow the electrode materials to withstand the mechanical stress during repeated charge/discharge processes and facilitate the reaction kinetics for the lithiation/delithiation processes. In the electrochemical cell tests, the synergetic effect of the proposed electrode design is explicitly verified by presenting highly enhanced rate capability and cycle durability on full-cell batteries as well as half-cell tests.