In situ synthesis of porous SnO2 nanospheres/graphene composite with enhanced electrochemical performance

Abstract

A large diameter porous SnO₂ nanospheres/graphene composite (p-SNG) was synthesized by a one-pot in situ hydrothermal method for the first time. XRD studies and FE-SEM, TEM images indicate that the porous SnO₂ nanospheres with diameters of about 200 nm are distributed on the graphene nanosheets (GNS) uniformly. In comparison with the bare SnO₂ nanospheres, the as-synthesized p-SNG exhibited enhanced initial charge and discharge capacity, superior cycle performance and rate performance. Electrochemical measurements demonstrated that the p-SNG composite delivered a reversible discharge capacity of 921.5 mA h g⁻¹ at a current density of 400 mA g⁻¹ after 50 cycles and a rate performance of 802.9 mA h g⁻¹ at a high current density of 1600 mA g⁻¹.