Ultrathin Porous Hexagonal Zn₃V₃O₈/ZnO@N‐C Nanoplates Synthesized via a Temperature‐Controlled Phase Separation Method as High‐Performance Anode Material for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Abstract

Transition metal vanadates (TMVs) have long been seen as promising anodes for lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs). To improve the electrochemical performance of them, designing rational nanostructures and utilizing the synergetic effect of multiple components are usually regarded as two effective strategies. Herein, ultrathin porous hexagonal Zn3V3O8/ZnO@N‐C (ZnVO@N‐C) nanoplates are synthesized via a phase separation method which is achieved by changing annealing temperatures. Under the annealing temperature of 650 °C, the obtained ZnVO‐650 nanoplates exhibit the best electrochemical performance. When used as LIB anodes, ZnVO‐650 nanoplates show high reversible rate capacity (393.9 mA h g−1 at 5 A g−1), excellent cycling performance (855.1 mA h g−1 at 0.2 A g−1 after 120 cycles), and superior long‐term cycling stability (489.2 mA h g−1 at 3 A g−1 after 500 cycles). The outstanding electrochemical performance of ZnVO‐650 nanoplates can be explained by their special morphology, abundant phase boundaries, synergetic effect of the components, and the N‐doped carbon layers.