Co3O4 mesoporous nanostructures@graphene membrane as an integrated anode for long-life lithium-ion batteries

One of the most attractive research areas in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is to design elaborate nano-structure of the electrode, which has been considered as keys to solve the problems such as the low energy density, slow lithium ion and electron transport, and the large volume change of electrode materials during cycling processes. Here, mesoporous CO3O4 with controllable structures was directly grown on a graphene membrane by hydrothermal reaction followed by annealing treatment, and used as an integrated anode in LIBs without using metallic current collector, binder and conductive additive. The light graphene membrane as current collector with high electrical conductivity and stability contributes to the high energy density of LIBs. A mesoporous structure with enough space is beneficial to lithium ion diffusion and strain buffer of CO3O4 during discharge/charge processes, rendering the electrodes high performance. The integrated electrode shows good rate capability and impressive cycling stability without capacity loss over 500 cycles under a high current density of 500 mA g(-1). (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.