Enhanced electrochemical properties of SnO2-graphene-carbon nanofibers tuned by phosphoric acid for potassium storage

Potassium-ion batteries (KIBs) are considered as attractive alternatives to commercial lithium-ion batteries. However, the lack of suitable electrodes to host large K+ for rapid as well as reversible insertion/extraction hinders the developments of KIBs. As an attempt, the phosphoric acid doped SnO2-graphene-carbon (P-SGC) nanofibers synthesized with a facile electrospinning method are introduced and applied as anode materials for KIBs. The P-SGC anodes present a reversible capacity of 285.9 mAh g(-1) over 60 cycles at the current density of 100 mA g(-1), and the high rate capacity of 208.53 mAh g(-1) at 1 A g(-1) as well. Emphasis is placed on enhancing the electrochemical properties of the SGC nanofibers by phosphoric acid modification through more active sites and higher electrical conductivity, accounting for improved K+ diffusion kinetics. Meanwhile, the coated carbon matrix and dispersive graphene buffer the structural changes and protect the active materials from destruction, leading to the good structural stability. With the presented results, these P-SGC nanofibers show attractive potential for future energy storage application of KIBs.