Preparation of uniform carbon nanoshell coated monodispersed ironoxide nanocrystals as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

In this paper, we present a simple method for scalable synthesis of uniform carbon nanoshell coatedmonodispersed iron oxide nanocrystals and report on the electrochemical performances of suchnanocomposites. The structure and morphology of the resulting nanocomposites are investigated withX-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Cyclic voltammetry (CV)and cyclic test of the nanocomposites as an anode material for lithium ion batteries are also studied. Themagnetite-C nanostructured material have a very high specific capacity of 859 mAh g−1in the initial cycleand high capacity retention out to 50 cycles at a constant current density of 100 mA/g, showing its poten-tial as an anode material in lithium-ion batteries. The superior electrochemical characteristics are a resultof the uniform distribution of magnetite nanoparticles, proper nanostructure, and good conductivity aswell as the prevention of aggregation by the carbon nanoshell during cycling.