A self-supported peapod-like mesoporous TiO2–C array with excellent anode performance in lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

Herein, we introduce a novel peapod-like architectural array with TiO₂ nanoparticles encapsulated in graphitized carbon fibers for the first time. The unique peapod-like TiO₂ arrays with high conductivity architectures are designed and fabricated for application in Li-ion batteries. Since the as-synthesized TiO₂ peapod array is characterized with the large surface area derived from the mesoporous carbon fiber, as well as the high conductivity further enhanced by a thin carbon coating layer, it has shown superior rate capability, high specific capacitances, and excellent cycling stability, e.g. the specific capacity can reach up to 162 mA h g⁻¹ over 200 cycles. A rational and universal approach to fabricate a high-performance TiO₂ peapod array for constructing next-generation Li-ion batteries is demonstrated in this paper. Furthermore, due to the specificity of the structure and the versatility of TiO₂, the nanocomposite can also be applied in photochemical catalysis, electronics, biomedicine, gas sensing and so on.