Construction of the peanut-like Co3O4 as anode materials for high-performance lithium-ion batteries

Uniform peanut-like Co3O4 was synthesized by a simple solvothermal method using ethylene glycol and dethylene glycol as solvents, and polyvinylpyrrolidone as surfactant. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) proved that the obtained Co3O4 product has uniform size, and each of the peanut-like Co3O4 was made up of ultra-small nanoparticles. In consideration of the special structure, peanut-like Co3O4 was used as an anode electrode for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), and which displayed satisfied electrochemical performance with high specific capacity (about 810 mA h g(-1)), long cyclability (700 mA h g(-1) after 70 cycles), and a good rate performance.