Biotemplate synthesis of mesoporous alpha-Fe2O3 hierarchical structure with assisted pseudocapacitive as an anode for long-life lithium ion batteries

The oriented biotemplate synthesis of nanostructured metal oxides as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) has recently attracted widespread attentions. Herein, mesoporous alpha-Fe2O3 hierarchical tubes (named as Fe-400) were successfully prepared by facile iron salt impregnation and air calcination at 400 degrees C using waste poplar branch as biotemplate. The hierarchical structure of Fe-400 is constructed from cross-linked small nanoparticles (similar to 29 nm), which then results in large specific surface area (37.7 m(2) g(-1)) and uniform mesoporous size distribution (12.2 nm). As anode material for LIBs, Fe-400 displays reversible capacity of 880.7 mA h g-1 after long-cycle of 800th at 1 A g(-1), indicating that this material has high capacity retention and good long-cycle stability. The prominent electrochemical properties are mainly ascribed to the large specific surface area, unique homogeneous mesopores, and the assisted pseudocapacitive behaviors of Fe-400. In view of the low-cost, environment-friendly and easily large-scale synthesis of Fe-400 electrode material, the present biotemplate strategy can present useful reference for the synthesis of other transition metal oxide-based anode materials for LIBs.

Automated summary

The study successfully utilized waste poplar branches as a biotemplate to prepare Fe-400, which exhibited high specific surface area and uniform mesoporous structure. It showed excellent capacity retention and stability in long-cycle operations, contributing to the potential of Fe-400 as an anode material for LIBs.