Synthesis of self-assembled 3D flowerlike SnS2 nanostructures with enhanced lithium ion storage property

In this work, we reported a facile ethanol solvothermal approach to fabricate highly dispersive 3D flowerlike SnS2 architectures. The effects of synthetic conditions, such as the solvent system and the concentration of thiourea, on the morphology of the products were investigated. A possible growth mechanism for the formation of 3D flowerlike architectures was preliminarily propounded on the basis of the evolution of the structure and the morphology with increasing the reaction time. As anode materials of rechargeable Li-ion batteries, the as-prepared flowerlike SnS2 structures exhibited exceptional good electrochemical properties, which revealed a higher reversible capacity about 502 mA h g(-1) and more stable cyclic retention at 50th cycle than the as-prepared SnS2 nanoplates. The reasons for the improved electrochemical performance of the flowerlike structures have been proposed. All the results demonstrated that they were potential anode materials in Li-ion batteries. (C) 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.