SnO2 Nanoflower–Nanocrystalline Cellulose Composites as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Abstract

One of the biggest challenges in the commercialization of tin dioxide (SnO2)-based lithium-ion battery (LIB) electrodes is the volume expansion of SnO2 during the charge–discharge process. Additionally, the aggregation of SnO2 also deteriorates the performance of anode materials. In this study, we prepared SnO2 nanoflowers (NFs) using nanocrystalline cellulose (CNC) to improve the surface area, prevent the particle aggregation, and alleviate the change in volume of LIB anodes. Moreover, CNC served not only as the template for the synthesis of the SnO2 NFs but also as a conductive material, after annealing the SnO2 NFs at 800 °C to improve their electrochemical performance. The obtained CNC–SnO2NF composite was used as an active LIB electrode material and exhibited good cycling performance and a high initial reversible capacity of 891 mA h g−1, at a current density of 100 mA g−1. The composite anode could retain 30% of its initial capacity after 500 charge–discharge cycles.

Nanocrystalline Cellulose Supported MnO2 Composite Materials for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries

“…On the first cathodic cycle, there is no peak that can be observed; however, in the following anodic process, there appears a significant peak at 1.15 V coresponding to the oxidation of MnO 2 nanoparticles during the delithiation reactions. From the second cycle, a reduction peak at 0.12 V can be confirmed, indicating that the carbon-based materials may form a stable SEI film [37][38][39][40]. Moreover, a boarder oxidation peak can still be observed at 1.15 V from the second cycle and is almost overlapped, which suggests that MnO 2 -CNC has a good stability in structure and electrochemial property after the first cycle.…”

“…The CNC suspension obtained from SK Innovation Co. Ltd. (Daejeon, Korea) was pyrolyzed at 800 • C (as described in our previous paper [40]) and was used as a source of CNC for synthesizing the nanocomposite from MnO 2 and CNC. Manganese (II) sulfate hydrate (MnSO 4 •xH 2 O) and potassium permanganate (KMnO 4 ), purchased from Sigma-Aldrich Co. Ltd. (St. Louis, MO, USA), were used in this study.…”

“…The nanocrystalline phase is also expected to prevent the combination of nanosized MnO 2 particles and to improve the contact between the electrode materials and the electrolyte, emerging in favorable cycle performance. [40]. The extant material weight is 20.5%, which is considered to be that of pyrolyzed CNC.…”

A Nanosheet-Assembled SnO2-Integrated Anode

“…Moreover, group IV element Sn in the form of metal oxide (SnO2) has particularly attracted extensive attention as a promising anode material to replace conventional graphitic carbon in current LIBs because of its uniqueness in terms of low cost, safe working potential, high theoretical capacity, and environmental friendliness [15][16][17][18][19]. Nevertheless, the simple structure, relatively low intrinsic conductivity, and vast structural variation during the reversible insertion/deinsertion processes of the bulk SnO2 powder keep it from achieving its full capacitance potential.…”

Next-Generation Materials for Energy Storage and Conversion

“…Secondly, the low-cost, lightweight, flexible, and environmentally favorable carbon nanocrystalline (CNC) was applied by S. J. Park et al [ 7 ] as the conductive matrix for preventing aggregation of tin dioxide (SnO 2 ) nanofibers in the composites. The process of heat-treatment (~800 °C) of the composite rendered it reasonable electrochemical properties, showing an initial discharge capacity of 1752 mA h g −1 , and it maintained a discharge capacity of ~270 mA h g −1 after 500 cycles.…”