Electrospun Fe2O3–carbon composite nanofibers as durable anode materials for lithium ion batteries

Abstract

Combination of metal oxides and carbon has been a favourable practice for their applications in high-rate energy storage mesoscopic electrodes. We report quasi 1D Fe₂O₃–carbon composite nanofibers obtained by the electrospinning method, and evaluate them as anodes for Li ion batteries. In the half-cell configuration, the anode exhibits a reversible capacity of 820 mA h g⁻¹ at a current rate of 0.2 C up to 100 cycles. At a higher current density of 5 C, the cells still exhibit a specific capacity of 262 mA h g⁻¹. Compared to pure electrospun Fe₂O₃ nanofibers, the capacity retention of Fe₂O₃–C composite nanofiber electrodes is drastically improved. The good electrochemical performance is associated with the homogenous dispersed Fe₂O₃ nanocrystals on the carbon nanofiber support. Such a structure prevents the aggregation of active materials, maintains the structure integrity and thus enhances the electronic conductivity during lithium insertion and extraction.