Novel Synthesis of Holey Reduced Graphene Oxide/Polystyrene (HRGO/PS) Nanocomposites by Microwave Irradiation as Anodes for High-Temperature Lithium-Ion Batteries

Abstract

To overcome the risk of exothermic lithium-ion battery overheating reactions, we fabricated a novel, high-temperature-stable anode material composed of holey reduced graphene oxide/polystyrene (HRGO/PS) nanocomposites synthesized through in situ bulk polymerization in the presence of HRGO via microwave irradiation. The HRGO/PS nanocomposites were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and electron microscopy analyses including field-emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. All characterization studies demonstrated homogenous dispersion of HRGO in the PS matrix, which enhanced the thermal and electrical properties of the overall nanocomposites. These novel HRGO/PS nanocomposites exhibited excellent electrochemical responses, with reversible charge/discharge capacities of 92.1/92.78 mA·h/g at a current density of 500 mA/g with ~100% capacity retention and ~100% coulombic efficiency at room temperature. Furthermore, an examination of the electrochemical properties of these nanocomposites at 110 °C showed that HRGO/PS nanocomposites still displayed good charge/discharge capacities with stable cycle performances for 150 cycles.

Radiation effects on materials for electrochemical energy storage systems

“…In situ bulk synthesis of holey reduced graphene oxide/ polystyrene (HRGO/PS) nanocomposites with 0.1%, 1%, and 2% HRGO concentrations via in situ polymerization was conducted using microwave irradiation by Aldawsari et al 77 A mixture of styrene, HRGO, and benzoyl peroxide was sonicated for 1 h, maintained at 60 1C for 20 h to promote polymerization, sonicated for an additional 1 h, then reduced by microwave irradiation. Electrical conductivity studies were conducted on neat PS and HRGO/PS, and showed that neat PS was insulative with an electrical conductivity in the range of 10 À2 -10 À7 S cm À1 .…”

Improving the electrochemical performance of a natural molybdenite/N-doped graphene composite anode for lithium-ion batteries via short-time microwave irradiation

“…Solvents usually need to be microwave absorbing and thermally conductive materials. [27][28][29][30][31] For the last decade, solvent-free microwave irradiation synthesis methods have been gradually developed [32][33][34][35][36][37][38] and some novel uses of solvent-free microwave irradiation have been explored such as microwave carbonization 39 and the synthesis of nanoparticles. 36 Previous studies showed that graphene can effectively absorb microwaves and generate a lot of heat and the temperature can rapidly rise above 1000 C in a few seconds, and the particles loaded on the graphene can transform into nanoparticles from microparticles.…”