C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> and Its Nanocomposite for High-Performance Lithium Storage.

Li, Zhengang; Wang, Shih-Hao; Cui, Jieshun; Wang, Yu; Zhang, Junxian; Xu, Ping; Zhou, Ming; Wang, Leeyih et al. · ACS Nano · 2020

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Organic carbon materials, such as graphene and nanotubes, with a high specific capacity show promise in improving the energy density for lithium ion batteries (LiBs). Here, we report on the synthesis and characterization of C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> and the C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub>/graphene oxide (GO) composite and demonstrate their use as anode materials in LiBs. We find that the C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub>/GO composite forms due to the chemical reactions between the carboxyl and epoxy groups of GO and the hydroxyl of C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> nanoparticles and that C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> uniformly grows on the surface of GO nanosheets. Using a suite of spectroscopy probes, we unequivocally show the mixing between C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> and GO at the molecular level, which leads to superior battery performances. This composite has a reversible capacity of 1596 mAh g<sup>-1</sup> at 0.2 A g<sup>-1</sup>, higher than the capacities of C<sub>60</sub>(OH)<sub>12</sub> and GO. This composite has a superior cycling stability and excellent rate performance, making it a promising organic anode material for high-performance LiBs.