Nano/Microstructured Silicon and Morphology Engineered Carbon as Anodes for High-Performance Rechargeable Batteries

Abstract

Nowadays, rechargeable batteries play a more and more important role in our daily life, showing promising application in portable devices, telecommunication, aerospace, medical treatment instrument, and other renewable energy storage facilities. During the past few years, the demand for high-performance rechargeable battery is still growing, especially lithium ion batteries (LIBs) which is now the most popular way for energy storage and conversion. In response to this situation, two main strategies are being taken, further enhancing the performance of lithium ion battery and exporing new types of batteries, such as potassium ion battery (KIB). For lithium ion battery, graphite as the traditional anode illustrates limited theoretical capacity (372 mAh g-1), making it provide an unsatisfactory energy storage capability required to meet ever-growing demands. Great efforts have been made to explore kinds of silicon electrodes due to its impressive theoretical capacity (about 4200 mAh g-1). However, it is still very hard to replace the graphite anode by silicon as a result of the unsatisfactory areal capacity. Thus, we turn eyes back on silicon-graphite composite electrode. The modified nano/micro-structured silicon can provide high reversible capacity, while carbon can play a role of stable framework structural integrity. Besides, considering the increasing shortages and uneven distribution of lithium resources, researchers also explored many other alternative batteries, in which potassium ion battery has gotten a lot of attention. Although potassium alloying into silicon has been demonstrated to be feasible, carbon anodes exhibit significant advantage in potassium ion storage reactivity and cycling stability. Modified carbon materials, especially heteroatom-doped carbon materials could demonstrate high activity for ion storage. Petroleum coke-based nitrogen-doped porous carbon nanosheets with g-C3N4 as template material and nitrogen precursor during preparation could be applied as advanced anode materials for not only lithium but also potassium storage. Besides, nitrogen/oxygen dual-doped highly wrinkled carbon tube is also rationally prepared through a rational designed two-step wrinkle formation process. Benefiting from the structural engineering, the NO-WCT prepared based on a facile solid-state method could provide both high capacity and excellent cycling stability.