Graphene encapsulated and SiC reinforced silicon nanowires as an anode material for lithium ion batteries

Abstract

Anode materials play a key role in the performance, in particular the capacity and lifetime, of lithium ion batteries (LIBs). Silicon has been demonstrated to be a promising anode material due to its high specific capacity, but pulverization during cycling and formation of an unstable solid-electrolyte interphase limit its cycle life. Herein, we show that anodes consisting of an active silicon nanowire (Si NW), which is surrounded by a uniform graphene shell and comprises silicon carbide nanocrystals, are capable of serving over 500 cycles in half cells at a high lithium storage capacity of 1650 mA h g⁻¹. In the anodes, the graphene shell provides a highly-conductive path and prevents direct exposure of Si NWs to electrolytes while the SiC nanocrystals may act as a rigid backbone to retain the integrity of the Si NW in its great deformation process caused by repetitive charging–discharging reactions, resulting in a stable cyclability.