A Composite of Nb₂O₅ and MoO₂ as a High‐Capacity High‐Rate Anode Material for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Abstract

A composite of Nb 2 O 5 and MoO 2 was synthesised using a hydrothermal reaction (225 °C) followed by a short heat-treatment step (600 °C) to achieve a high-capacity, high-rate anode for lithium-ion battery applications. The composite was shown via powder X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy to be an intimate mix of individual oxide particles rather than an atomically mixed oxide material, and shown by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF) to contain a 45 : 55 ratio of Nb : Mo. This material is demonstrated to show notable rate capability in lithium (Li) half-cell cycling and rate tests. When cycled at 100 °C the material achieved over 100 mAh g À 1 even after 400 cycles and shows a stable reversible capacity of 514 mAh g À 1 (at 1 C), realising its theoretical capacity. The composite shows electrochemical results comparable to Nb 2 O 5 : C composites yet achieves far higher capacities at low-rate due to the MoO 2 content.