Centrifugally Spun α-Fe2O3/TiO2/Carbon Composite Fibers as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Authors

Luis Zuniga, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Gabriel Gonzalez, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Roberto Orrostieta Chavez, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
Jason C. Myers
Timothy P. Lodge
Mataz Alcoutlabi, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-26-2019

Abstract

We report results on the electrochemical performance of flexible and binder-free α-Fe₂O₃/TiO₂/carbon composite fiber anodes for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). The composite fibers were produced via centrifugal spinning and subsequent thermal processing. The fibers were prepared from a precursor solution containing PVP/iron (III) acetylacetonate/titanium (IV) butoxide/ethanol/acetic acid followed by oxidation at 200 °C in air and then carbonization at 550 °C under flowing argon. The morphology and structure of the composite fibers were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). These ternary composite fiber anodes showed an improved electrochemical performance compared to the pristine TiO₂/C and α-Fe₂O₃/C composite fiber electrodes. The α-Fe₂O₃/TiO₂/C composite fibers also showed a superior cycling performance with a specific capacity of 340 mAh g⁻¹ after 100 cycles at a current density of 100 mA g⁻¹, compared to 61 mAh g⁻¹ and 121 mAh g⁻¹ for TiO₂/C and α-Fe₂O₃/C composite electrodes, respectively. The improved electrochemical performance and the simple processing of these metal oxide/carbon composite fibers make them promising candidates for the next generation and cost-effective flexible binder-free anodes for LIBs.

Comments

Original published version available at https://doi.org/10.3390/app9194032

Recommended Citation

Zuniga, L., Gonzalez, G., Orrostieta Chavez, R., Myers, J. C., Lodge, T. P., & Alcoutlabi, M. (2019). Centrifugally Spun α-Fe2O3/TiO2/Carbon Composite Fibers as Anode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries. Applied Sciences, 9(19), 4032. https://doi.org/10.3390/app9194032

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Publication Title

Applied Sciences

DOI

10.3390/app9194032