Rational synthesis of a hierarchical Mo2C/C nanosheet composite with enhanced lithium storage properties |
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Authors: | Xin Yue Minglei Cao Limeng Wu Wei Chen Xingxing Li Yanan Ma Chuankun Zhang |
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Institution: | School of Sciences, Hubei University of Automotive Technology, Shiyan 442002 P. R. China, |
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Abstract: | Transition metal carbides have been studied extensively as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), but they suffer from sluggish lithium reaction kinetics and large volume expansion. Herein, a hierarchical Mo2C/C nanosheet composite has been synthesized through a rational pyrolysis strategy, and evaluated as an anode material with enhanced lithium storage properties for LIBs. In the hierarchical Mo2C/C nanosheet composite, large numbers of Mo2C nanosheets with a thickness of 40–100 nm are uniformly anchored onto/into carbon nanosheet matrices. This unique hierarchical architecture can provide favorable ion and electron transport pathways and alleviate the volume change of Mo2C during cycling. As a consequence, the hierarchical Mo2C/C nanosheet composite exhibits high-performance lithium storage with a reversible capacity of up to 868.6 mA h g−1 after 300 cycles at a current density of 0.2 A g−1, as well as a high rate capacity of 541.8 mA h g−1 even at 5.0 A g−1. More importantly, this hierarchical composite demonstrates impressive cyclability with a capacity retention efficiency of 122.1% over 5000 successive cycles at 5.0 A g−1, which surpasses the cycling properties of most other Mo2C-based materials reported to date.The hierarchical Mo2C/C nanosheet composite exhibits excellent cyclability owing to its structural and kinetic advantages. |
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