Copper oxide/graphene composite as higher-capacity anode material for lithium-ion batteries
25 November 2010
Researchers at the State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, China synthesized a copper oxide (CuO)/graphene composite for use as an anode material in Li-ion batteries.
CuO nanoparticles with sizes of about 30 nm homogeneously locate on graphene sheets, and act as spacers to effectively prevent the agglomeration of graphene sheets, keeping their high active surface. In turn, the graphene sheets with good electrical conductivity serve as a conducting network for fast electron transfer between the active materials and charge collector, as well as buffered spaces to accommodate the volume expansion/contraction during discharge/charge process.
The CuO/graphene composite shows an improved initial coulombic efficiency (68.7%) and reversible capacity of 583.5 mAh g-1 with 75.5% retention of the reversible capacity after 50 cycles.
A paper on their study is in press in the journal Electrochimica Acta.
Keywords: Graphene; Cupric oxide; Lithium-ion battery
Resources
Y.J. Mai, X.L. Wang, J.Y. Xiang, Y.Q. Qiao, D. Zhang, C.D. Gu and J.P. Tu (2010) CuO/graphene composite as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Electrochimica Acta doi: 10.1016/j.electacta.2010.11.036
Interesting development for improved lithium based batteries. This is one step towards higher energy density, increased cycles and quicker recharges for EV batteries.
Will it be enough to compete against future solid state batteries?
Posted by: HarveyD | 26 November 2010 at 08:40 AM