Enhancing the performance of Sn–C nanocomposite as lithium ion anode by discharge plasma assisted milling

Abstract

An efficient synthesis method, namely dielectric barrier discharge plasma assisted milling (P-milling), is used for the first time to prepare Sn–C anode materials for lithium ion batteries. By short-time P-milling, a unique Sn–C nanocomposite is obtained with a microstructure of multi-scale Sn particles homogeneously dispersed in a graphite matrix. The P-milled Sn–C nanocomposite anodes exhibit much better electrochemical performance with higher reversible capacity and better cyclability in comparison with those obtained by conventional milling (C-milling). Our results demonstrate that discharge plasma assisted milling is a simple and efficient method to prepare Sn–C composite anodes on a large scale with good performance for lithium ion battery applications.