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Nanomaterials
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Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond
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Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (14 October 2015) | Viewed by 110217

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Andy Xueliang Sun

grade E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, University of Western Ontario, London, ON N6A 5B9, Canada
Interests: synthesis and optimization of nanomaterials; nanomaterial properties; nanotechnology; lithium (sodium) ion batteries; fuel cells; lithium sulfur batteries; lithium (sodium) air batteries
Prof. Dr. Xifei Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Energy and Materials Engineering Centre, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin 300387, China
Interests: synthesis and optimization of nanomaterials; nanostructures; nanomaterial properties; lithium (sodium) ion batteries; supercapacitors; lithium sulfur batteries

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Li-ion battery and behind systems provide obvious advantages of high energy, power density, and light weight. Thus, they have become promising technological choices for consumer electronic devices, portable power tools, and electric vehicles. Nanostructured materials possess improved electronic, thermal, and mechanical properties. These properties are enabled by virtue of these materials' nanosized dimensions, which significantly increase the electrochemical performances of Li-ion batteries and of behind systems. The current fundamental development and understanding of nanostructured materials demonstrate broad and excellent applications in Li-ion batteries and behind.

This Special Issue is aimed at providing significant contributions on advances in the synthesis, optimization, and characterization of nanostructured materials, with an emphasis on nanomaterials being applied for building high performance Li-ion batteries and behind systems. The nanostructured materials include, but are not limited to, nano-carbon (carbon nanotubes, graphene), metallic materials, metal oxides, polymer nanoparticles, thin films, nano-membranes, and their composites, with a special emphasis on their potential uses for Li-ion batteries and behind.

Prof. Dr. Xueliang (Andy) Sun
Prof. Dr. Xifei Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nanomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nanomaterials
  • nanostructures
  • Li-ion batteries
  • Na-ion batteries
  • Li-S batteries
  • safety performance
  • battery performance
  • battery cost

Published Papers (15 papers)

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Editorial

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146 KiB  
Editorial
Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond
by Xifei Li and Xueliang Sun
Nanomaterials 2016, 6(4), 63; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano6040063 - 07 Apr 2016
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4232
Abstract
This Special Issue “Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond” of Nanomaterials is focused on advancements in the synthesis, optimization, and characterization of nanostructured materials, with an emphasis on the application of nanomaterials for building high performance Li-ion batteries (LIBs) and future systems.[...] [...] Read more.
This Special Issue “Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond” of Nanomaterials is focused on advancements in the synthesis, optimization, and characterization of nanostructured materials, with an emphasis on the application of nanomaterials for building high performance Li-ion batteries (LIBs) and future systems.[...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)

Research

Jump to: Editorial, Review

3758 KiB  
Communication
Nitrogen-Doped Banana Peel–Derived Porous Carbon Foam as Binder-Free Electrode for Supercapacitors
by Bingzhi Liu, Lili Zhang, Peirong Qi, Mingyuan Zhu, Gang Wang, Yanqing Ma, Xuhong Guo, Hui Chen, Boya Zhang, Zhuangzhi Zhao, Bin Dai and Feng Yu
Nanomaterials 2016, 6(1), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano6010018 - 15 Jan 2016
Cited by 62 | Viewed by 10413
Abstract
Nitrogen-doped banana peel–derived porous carbon foam (N-BPPCF) successfully prepared from banana peels is used as a binder-free electrode for supercapacitors. The N-BPPCF exhibits superior performance including high specific surface areas of 1357.6 m2/g, large pore volume of 0.77 cm3/g, [...] Read more.
Nitrogen-doped banana peel–derived porous carbon foam (N-BPPCF) successfully prepared from banana peels is used as a binder-free electrode for supercapacitors. The N-BPPCF exhibits superior performance including high specific surface areas of 1357.6 m2/g, large pore volume of 0.77 cm3/g, suitable mesopore size distributions around 3.9 nm, and super hydrophilicity with nitrogen-containing functional groups. It can easily be brought into contact with an electrolyte to facilitate electron and ion diffusion. A comparative analysis on the electrochemical properties of BPPCF electrodes is also conducted under similar conditions. The N-BPPCF electrode offers high specific capacitance of 185.8 F/g at 5 mV/s and 210.6 F/g at 0.5 A/g in 6 M KOH aqueous electrolyte versus 125.5 F/g at 5 mV/s and 173.1 F/g at 0.5 A/g for the BPPCF electrode. The results indicate that the N-BPPCF is a binder-free electrode that can be used for high performance supercapacitors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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979 KiB  
Article
X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy Characterization of a Li/S Cell
by Yifan Ye, Ayako Kawase, Min-Kyu Song, Bingmei Feng, Yi-Sheng Liu, Matthew A. Marcus, Jun Feng, Elton J. Cairns, Jinghua Guo and Junfa Zhu
Nanomaterials 2016, 6(1), 14; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano6010014 - 11 Jan 2016
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 9486
Abstract
The X-ray absorption spectroscopy technique has been applied to study different stages of the lithium/sulfur (Li/S) cell life cycle. We have investigated how speciation of S in Li/S cathodes changes upon the introduction of CTAB (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CH3(CH2)15 [...] Read more.
The X-ray absorption spectroscopy technique has been applied to study different stages of the lithium/sulfur (Li/S) cell life cycle. We have investigated how speciation of S in Li/S cathodes changes upon the introduction of CTAB (cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CH3(CH2)15N+(CH3)3Br−) and with charge/discharge cycling. The introduction of CTAB changes the synthesis reaction pathway dramatically due to the interaction of CTAB with the terminal S atoms of the polysulfide ions in the Na2Sx solution. For the cycled Li/S cell, the loss of electrochemically active sulfur and the accumulation of a compact blocking insulating layer of unexpected sulfur reaction products on the cathode surface during the charge/discharge processes make the capacity decay. A modified coin cell and a vacuum-compatible three-electrode electro-chemical cell have been introduced for further in-situ/in-operando studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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1760 KiB  
Communication
Freestanding rGO-SWNT-STN Composite Film as an Anode for Li Ion Batteries with High Energy and Power Densities
by Taeseup Song, Junghyun Choi and Ungyu Paik
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2380-2390; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042380 - 18 Dec 2015
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 6704
Abstract
Freestanding Si-Ti-Ni alloy particles/reduced graphene oxide/single wall carbon nanotube composites have been prepared as an anode for lithium ion batteries via a simple filtration method. This composite electrode showed a 9% increase in reversible capacity, a two-fold higher cycle retention at 50 cycles [...] Read more.
Freestanding Si-Ti-Ni alloy particles/reduced graphene oxide/single wall carbon nanotube composites have been prepared as an anode for lithium ion batteries via a simple filtration method. This composite electrode showed a 9% increase in reversible capacity, a two-fold higher cycle retention at 50 cycles and a two-fold higher rate capability at 2 C compared to pristine Si-Ti-Ni (STN) alloy electrodes. These improvements were attributed to the suppression of the pulverization of the STN active material by the excellent mechanical properties of the reduced graphene oxide-single wall carbon nanotube networks and the enhanced kinetics associated with both electron and Li ion transport. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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546 KiB  
Article
Size Effect of Ordered Mesoporous Carbon Nanospheres for Anodes in Li-Ion Battery
by Pei-Yi Chang, Kartick Bindumadhavan and Ruey-An Doong
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2348-2358; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042348 - 18 Dec 2015
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 7717
Abstract
The present work demonstrates the application of various sizes of ordered mesoporous carbon nanospheres (OMCS) with diameters of 46–130 nm as an active anode material for Li-ion batteries (LIB). The physical and chemical properties of OMCS have been evaluated by performing scanning electron [...] Read more.
The present work demonstrates the application of various sizes of ordered mesoporous carbon nanospheres (OMCS) with diameters of 46–130 nm as an active anode material for Li-ion batteries (LIB). The physical and chemical properties of OMCS have been evaluated by performing scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 adsorption-desorption analysis; small-angle scattering system (SAXS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical analysis of using various sizes of OMCS as anode materials showed high capacity and rate capability with the specific capacity up to 560 mA·h·g−1 at 0.1 C after 85 cycles. In terms of performance at high current rate compared to other amorphous carbonaceous materials; a stable and extremely high specific capacity of 240 mA·h·g−1 at 5 C after 15 cycles was achieved. Such excellent performance is mainly attributed to the suitable particle size distribution of OMCS and intimate contact between OMCS and conductive additives; which can be supported from the TEM images. Results obtained from this study clearly indicate the excellence of size distribution of highly integrated mesoporous structure of carbon nanospheres for LIB application. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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827 KiB  
Article
Facile and Eco-Friendly Synthesis of Finger-Like Co3O4 Nanorods for Electrochemical Energy Storage
by Shijiao Sun, Xiangyu Zhao, Meng Yang, Liqun Ma and Xiaodong Shen
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2335-2347; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042335 - 17 Dec 2015
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 5771
Abstract
Co3O4 nanorods were prepared by a facile hydrothermal method. Eco-friendly deionized water rather than organic solvent was used as the hydrothermal media. The as-prepared Co3O4 nanorods are composed of many nanoparticles of 30–50 nm in diameter, forming [...] Read more.
Co3O4 nanorods were prepared by a facile hydrothermal method. Eco-friendly deionized water rather than organic solvent was used as the hydrothermal media. The as-prepared Co3O4 nanorods are composed of many nanoparticles of 30–50 nm in diameter, forming a finger-like morphology. The Co3O4 electrode shows a specific capacitance of 265 F g−1 at 2 mV s−1 in a supercapacitor and delivers an initial specific discharge capacity as high as 1171 mAh g−1 at a current density of 50 mA g−1 in a lithium ion battery. Excellent cycling stability and electrochemical reversibility of the Co3O4 electrode were also obtained. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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3186 KiB  
Article
Nanoscience Supporting the Research on the Negative Electrodes of Li-Ion Batteries
by Alain Mauger and Christian M. Julien
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2279-2301; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042279 - 16 Dec 2015
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 6359
Abstract
Many efforts are currently made to increase the limited capacity of Li-ion batteries using carbonaceous anodes. The way to reach this goal is to move to nano-structured material because the larger surface to volume ratio of particles and the reduction of the electron [...] Read more.
Many efforts are currently made to increase the limited capacity of Li-ion batteries using carbonaceous anodes. The way to reach this goal is to move to nano-structured material because the larger surface to volume ratio of particles and the reduction of the electron and Li path length implies a larger specific capacity. Additionally, nano-particles can accommodate such a dilatation/contraction during cycling, resulting in a calendar life compatible with a commercial use. In this review attention is focused on carbon, silicon, and Li4Ti5O12 materials, because they are the most promising for applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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1981 KiB  
Article
Simulation of the Impact of Si Shell Thickness on the Performance of Si-Coated Vertically Aligned Carbon Nanofiber as Li-Ion Battery Anode
by Susobhan Das, Jun Li and Rongqing Hui
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2268-2278; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042268 - 15 Dec 2015
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 5177
Abstract
Micro- and nano-structured electrodes have the potential to improve the performance of Li-ion batteries by increasing the surface area of the electrode and reducing the diffusion distance required by the charged carriers. We report the numerical simulation of Lithium-ion batteries with the anode [...] Read more.
Micro- and nano-structured electrodes have the potential to improve the performance of Li-ion batteries by increasing the surface area of the electrode and reducing the diffusion distance required by the charged carriers. We report the numerical simulation of Lithium-ion batteries with the anode made of core-shell heterostructures of silicon-coated carbon nanofibers. We show that the energy capacity can be significantly improved by reducing the thickness of the silicon anode to the dimension comparable or less than the Li-ion diffusion length inside silicon. The results of simulation indicate that the contraction of the silicon electrode thickness during the battery discharge process commonly found in experiments also plays a major role in the increase of the energy capacity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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3462 KiB  
Article
Structural and Morphological Tuning of LiCoPO4 Materials Synthesized by Solvo-Thermal Methods for Li-Cell Applications
by Jessica Manzi, Mariangela Curcio and Sergio Brutti
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 2212-2230; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5042212 - 10 Dec 2015
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 5695
Abstract
Olivine-type lithium metal phosphates (LiMPO4) are promising cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries. LiFePO4 (LFP) is commonly used in commercial Li-ion cells but the Fe3+/Fe2+ couple can be usefully substituted with Mn3+/Mn2+, Co3+ [...] Read more.
Olivine-type lithium metal phosphates (LiMPO4) are promising cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries. LiFePO4 (LFP) is commonly used in commercial Li-ion cells but the Fe3+/Fe2+ couple can be usefully substituted with Mn3+/Mn2+, Co3+/Co2+, or Ni3+/Ni2+, in order to obtain higher redox potentials. In this communication we report a systematic analysis of the synthesis condition of LiCoPO4 (LCP) using a solvo-thermal route at low temperature, the latter being a valuable candidate to overcome the theoretical performances of LFP. In fact, LCP shows higher working potential (4.8 V vs. 3.6 V) compared to LFP and similar theoretical capacity (167 mAh·g−1). Our goal is to show the effect of the synthesis condition of the ability of LCP to reversibly cycle lithium in electrochemical cells. LCP samples have been prepared through a solvo-thermal method in aqueous-non aqueous solvent blends. Different Co2+ salts have been used to study the effect of the anion on the crystal growth as well as the effect of solution acidity, temperature and reaction time. Materials properties have been characterized by Fast-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopies. The correlation between structure/morphology and electrochemical performances has been investigated by galvanostatic charge-discharge cycles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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3519 KiB  
Article
Lithium-Excess Research of Cathode Material Li2MnTiO4 for Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Xinyi Zhang, Le Yang, Feng Hao, Haosen Chen, Meng Yang and Daining Fang
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 1985-1994; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5041985 - 20 Nov 2015
Cited by 30 | Viewed by 6741
Abstract
Lithium-excess and nano-sized Li2+xMn1−x/2TiO4 (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4) cathode materials were synthesized via a sol-gel method. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments indicate that the obtained main phases of Li2.0MnTiO4 and [...] Read more.
Lithium-excess and nano-sized Li2+xMn1−x/2TiO4 (x = 0, 0.2, 0.4) cathode materials were synthesized via a sol-gel method. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments indicate that the obtained main phases of Li2.0MnTiO4 and the lithium-excess materials are monoclinic and cubic, respectively. The scanning electron microscope (SEM) images show that the as-prepared particles are well distributed and the primary particles have an average size of about 20–30 nm. The further electrochemical tests reveal that the charge-discharge performance of the material improves remarkably with the lithium content increasing. Particularly, the first discharging capacity at the current of 30 mA g−1 increases from 112.2 mAh g−1 of Li2.0MnTiO4 to 187.5 mAh g−1 of Li2.4Mn0.8TiO4. In addition, the ex situ XRD experiments indicate that the monoclinic Li2MnTiO4 tends to transform to an amorphous state with the extraction of lithium ions, while the cubic Li2MnTiO4 phase shows better structural reversibility and stability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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1811 KiB  
Article
Direct Growth of Bismuth Film as Anode for Aqueous Rechargeable Batteries in LiOH, NaOH and KOH Electrolytes
by Wenhua Zuo, Pan Xu, Yuanyuan Li and Jinping Liu
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 1756-1765; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5041756 - 22 Oct 2015
Cited by 38 | Viewed by 6925
Abstract
As promising candidates for next-generation energy storage devices, aqueous rechargeable batteries are safer and cheaper than organic Li ion batteries. But due to the narrow voltage window of aqueous electrolytes, proper anode materials with low redox potential and high capacity are quite rare. [...] Read more.
As promising candidates for next-generation energy storage devices, aqueous rechargeable batteries are safer and cheaper than organic Li ion batteries. But due to the narrow voltage window of aqueous electrolytes, proper anode materials with low redox potential and high capacity are quite rare. In this work, bismuth electrode film was directly grown by a facile hydrothermal route and tested in LiOH, NaOH and KOH electrolytes. With low redox potential (reduction/oxidation potentials at ca. −0.85/−0.52 V vs. SCE, respectively) and high specific capacity (170 mAh·g−1 at current density of 0.5 A·g−1 in KOH electrolyte), Bi was demonstrated as a suitable anode material for aqueous batteries. Furthermore, by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) analysis, we found that with smaller Rs and faster ion diffusion coefficient, Bi electrode film in KOH electrolyte exhibited better electrochemical performance than in LiOH and NaOH electrolytes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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1728 KiB  
Article
Computational Evaluation of Amorphous Carbon Coating for Durable Silicon Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries
by Jeongwoon Hwang, Jisoon Ihm, Kwang-Ryeol Lee and Seungchul Kim
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 1654-1666; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5041654 - 13 Oct 2015
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 6050
Abstract
We investigate the structural, mechanical, and electronic properties of graphite-like amorphous carbon coating on bulky silicon to examine whether it can improve the durability of the silicon anodes of lithium-ion batteries using molecular dynamics simulations and ab-initio electronic structure calculations. Structural models of [...] Read more.
We investigate the structural, mechanical, and electronic properties of graphite-like amorphous carbon coating on bulky silicon to examine whether it can improve the durability of the silicon anodes of lithium-ion batteries using molecular dynamics simulations and ab-initio electronic structure calculations. Structural models of carbon coating are constructed using molecular dynamics simulations of atomic carbon deposition with low incident energies (1–16 eV). As the incident energy decreases, the ratio of sp2 carbons increases, that of sp3 decreases, and the carbon films become more porous. The films prepared with very low incident energy contain lithium-ion conducting channels. Also, those films are electrically conductive to supplement the poor conductivity of silicon and can restore their structure after large deformation to accommodate the volume change during the operations. As a result of this study, we suggest that graphite-like porous carbon coating on silicon will extend the lifetime of the silicon anodes of lithium-ion batteries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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2610 KiB  
Communication
Controllable Synthesis of Copper Oxide/Carbon Core/Shell Nanowire Arrays and Their Application for Electrochemical Energy Storage
by Jiye Zhan, Minghua Chen and Xinhui Xia
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(4), 1610-1619; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5041610 - 09 Oct 2015
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 6524
Abstract
Rational design/fabrication of integrated porous metal oxide arrays is critical for the construction of advanced electrochemical devices. Herein, we report self-supported CuO/C core/shell nanowire arrays prepared by the combination of electro-deposition and chemical vapor deposition methods. CuO/C nanowires with diameters of ~400 nm [...] Read more.
Rational design/fabrication of integrated porous metal oxide arrays is critical for the construction of advanced electrochemical devices. Herein, we report self-supported CuO/C core/shell nanowire arrays prepared by the combination of electro-deposition and chemical vapor deposition methods. CuO/C nanowires with diameters of ~400 nm grow quasi-vertically to the substrates forming three-dimensional arrays architecture. A thin carbon shell is uniformly coated on the CuO nanowire cores. As an anode of lithium ion batteries, the resultant CuO/C nanowire arrays are demonstrated to have high specific capacity (672 mAh·g−1 at 0.2 C) and good cycle stability (425 mAh·g−1 at 1 C up to 150 cycles). The core/shell arrays structure plays positive roles in the enhancement of Li ion storage due to fast ion/electron transfer path, good strain accommodation and sufficient contact between electrolyte and active materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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1855 KiB  
Article
High Performance Li4Ti5O12/Si Composite Anodes for Li-Ion Batteries
by Chunhui Chen, Richa Agrawal and Chunlei Wang
Nanomaterials 2015, 5(3), 1469-1480; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano5031469 - 28 Aug 2015
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 7892
Abstract
Improving the energy capacity of spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) is very important to utilize it as a high-performance Li-ion battery (LIB) electrode. In this work, LTO/Si composites with different weight ratios were prepared and tested as anodes. The anodic [...] Read more.
Improving the energy capacity of spinel Li4Ti5O12 (LTO) is very important to utilize it as a high-performance Li-ion battery (LIB) electrode. In this work, LTO/Si composites with different weight ratios were prepared and tested as anodes. The anodic and cathodic peaks from both LTO and silicon were apparent in the composites, indicating that each component was active upon Li+ insertion and extraction. The composites with higher Si contents (LTO:Si = 35:35) exhibited superior specific capacity (1004 mAh·g−1) at lower current densities (0.22 A·g−1) but the capacity deteriorated at higher current densities. On the other hand, the electrodes with moderate Si contents (LTO:Si = 50:20) were able to deliver stable capacity (100 mAh·g−1) with good cycling performance, even at a very high current density of 7 A·g−1. The improvement in specific capacity and rate performance was a direct result of the synergy between LTO and Si; the former can alleviate the stresses from volumetric changes in Si upon cycling, while Si can add to the capacity of the composite. Therefore, it has been demonstrated that the addition of Si and concentration optimization is an easy yet an effective way to produce high performance LTO-based electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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Review

Jump to: Editorial, Research

1510 KiB  
Review
A Brief Review on Multivalent Intercalation Batteries with Aqueous Electrolytes
by Ramesh K. Guduru and Juan C. Icaza
Nanomaterials 2016, 6(3), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano6030041 - 26 Feb 2016
Cited by 132 | Viewed by 13072
Abstract
Rapidly growing global demand for high energy density rechargeable batteries has driven the research toward developing new chemistries and battery systems beyond Li-ion batteries. Due to the advantages of delivering more than one electron and giving more charge capacity, the multivalent systems have [...] Read more.
Rapidly growing global demand for high energy density rechargeable batteries has driven the research toward developing new chemistries and battery systems beyond Li-ion batteries. Due to the advantages of delivering more than one electron and giving more charge capacity, the multivalent systems have gained considerable attention. At the same time, affordability, ease of fabrication and safety aspects have also directed researchers to focus on aqueous electrolyte based multivalent intercalation batteries. There have been a decent number of publications disclosing capabilities and challenges of several multivalent battery systems in aqueous electrolytes, and while considering an increasing interest in this area, here, we present a brief overview of their recent progress, including electrode chemistries, functionalities and challenges. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanostructured Materials for Li-Ion Batteries and Beyond)
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