Scientific Reports, 4, 4605, 2014.
Zachary Favors, Wei Wang, Hamed Hosseini Bay, Aaron George, Mihrimah Ozkan, Cengiz S. Ozkan.
Materials Science and Engineering Program, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California Riverside, CA 92521 (USA) &
Department of Electrical Engineering, Department of Chemistry, University of California, University of California Riverside, CA 92521 (USA).
Abstract
Herein, SiO2 nanotubes have been fabricated via a facile two step hard-template growth method and evaluated as an anode for Li-ion batteries. SiO2 nanotubes exhibit a highly stable reversible capacity of 1266 mAhg−1 after 100 cycles with negligible capacity fading. SiO2 NT anodes experience a capacity increase throughout the first 80 cycles through Si phase growth via SiO2 reduction. The hollow morphology of the SiO2 nanotubes accommodates the large volume expansion experienced by Si-based anodes during lithiation and promotes preservation of the solid electrolyte interphase layer. The thin walls of the SiO2 nanotubes allow for effective reduction in Li-ion diffusion path distance and, thus, afford a favorable rate cyclability. The high aspect ratio character of these nanotubes allow for a relatively scalable fabrication method of nanoscale SiO2-based anodes.