Seed-assisted growth of α-Fe2O3 nanorod arrays on reduced graphene oxide: a superior anode for high-performance Li-ion and Na-ion batteries

Abstract

α-Fe₂O₃ nanorod/reduced graphene oxide nanosheet composites (denoted as α-Fe₂O₃@r-GO NRAs) are fabricated by using a facile and scalable seed-assisted hydrothermal growth route, in which the α-Fe₂O₃ nanorods are assembled onto the side surfaces of r-GO nanosheets. Such α-Fe₂O₃@r-GO hybrid nanostructures are tested as anodes for both Li-ion and Na-ion batteries (LIBs and SIBs), which exhibit excellent performance with high capacity and long-cycling stability. When used for LIBs, the hybrid α-Fe₂O₃@r-GO NRAs electrode exhibits a highly stable Li⁺ storage capacity of 1200 mA h g⁻¹ after 500 cycles at 0.2C and excellent rate capability. Moreover, the hybrid α-Fe₂O₃@r-GO NRAs also display their versatility as an anode for SIBs, which delivers high reversible Na⁺ storage capacity of 332 mA h g⁻¹ at 0.2C over 300 cycles with long-term cycling stability. The excellent electrochemical performance of the hybrid α-Fe₂O₃@r-GO NRAs anodes could be ascribed to the synergistic effect between the α-Fe₂O₃ nanorod arrays and reduced graphene oxide nanosheets, which could availably promote the charge transport and accommodate the volume change upon the long-term charge–discharge process for reversible Li⁺ or Na⁺ storage.