Constructive designing of ternary metal oxide as an anode material for high performance lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

Rational design of ternary transition metal oxides for electrochemical energy storage and conversion application is highly desirable due to their synergetic effect and structural modifications. In this regards, binder-free urchin-like Mn substituted NiCo2O4 microspheres grown on conducting substrate by co-precipitation method followed by calcination. Direct growth of active material on nickel foam (Mn0.1Ni0.9Co2O4/NF) results in a high reversible capacity of 1076 mAh/g at current density of 1.6 A/g and excellent stability of 350 cycles. As compared to bimetallic NiCo2O4, improved electrochemical performance of Mn substituted NiCo2O4 is mainly ascribed to the 3D structure with high surface area and abundant mesopores, which can efficiently reduce the diffusion length of ions and improve the structural stability by providing enough space for volume expansion during delithiation/lithiation processes.