Facile assembly of a 3D rGO/MWCNTs/Fe2O3 ternary composite as the anode material for high-performance lithium ion batteries

Abstract

A three-dimensional (3D) reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs)/Fe₂O₃ ternary composite was fabricated by a facile, green and economical one-step urea-assisted hydrothermal approach as a promising anode material for high-performance lithium ion batteries. Designing and tailoring the 3D porous hierarchical nanostructure of rGO/MWCNTs/Fe₂O₃ contributes to a robust hybrid material with overwhelmingly superior electrochemical performances compared with bare Fe₂O₃, MWCNTs/Fe₂O₃, rGO/Fe₂O₃ and a physical mixture of rGO/Fe₂O₃ and MWCNTs, due to the strong synergistic effects among the individual component. The 3D rGO/MWCNTs/Fe₂O₃ composite exhibits highly enhanced specific capacity, cycling performance and rate capability: initial discharge and charge capacities of 1692 and 1322 mAh g⁻¹ at 100 mA g⁻¹, respectively, 1118 mAh g⁻¹ after 50 cycles at 100 mA g⁻¹ and 785 mAh g⁻¹ at 1000 mA g⁻¹. The assembling mechanism well illustrates the simple strategy, and the comprehensive electrochemical investigations further demonstrate its supernormal effectiveness, which could be extended to various transition metal oxides for energy storage and conversion.