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Characterization of Fe 2 O 3 /Graphene Composites Synthesized using an In Situ Reaction of Inexpensive Graphite Oxide and FeCl 3
Author(s) -
Chen Yan,
Zhang Shuang,
Feng Yuanyuan,
Yang Gang,
Ji Hongmei,
Miao Xiaowei
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
chemelectrochem
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.182
H-Index - 59
ISSN - 2196-0216
DOI - 10.1002/celc.202001077
Subject(s) - graphene , materials science , oxide , graphite oxide , graphite , electrochemistry , lithium (medication) , composite number , electrolyte , faraday efficiency , carbon fibers , anode , chemical engineering , nanoparticle , composite material , nanotechnology , electrode , metallurgy , chemistry , medicine , endocrinology , engineering
The use of inexpensive graphite oxide (GO) as a carbon source, instead of the expensive reduced graphene oxide (rGO), is essential to prepare metal oxide/rGO composites. In this work, we investigated the in situ reaction of GO and FeCl 3 to produce Fe 2 O 3 /rGO composites as anode materials for high‐energy lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs). In this reaction, iron ions combined with the oxygen‐containing functional groups of GO, which subsequently grew into Fe 2 O 3 nanoparticles, whereas the GO transformed into rGO under hydrothermal conditions. In the composite Fe 2 O 3 −rGO x samples, intergranular gaps in the Fe 2 O 3 sub‐micron particles evidently increased the contact between the Fe 2 O 3 active material and the electrolyte, which improved the Li‐ion conductivity and electrochemical performance of the Fe 2 O 3 −rGO x composites. The Fe 2 O 3 −rGO 2 sample showed the best cyclic performance and delivered the highest capacity of all samples. The initial discharge and charge capacities of Fe 2 O 3 −rGO 2 were 1086.3 and 722.4 mAh g −1 , respectively. After 100 cycles, the discharge specific capacity of Fe 2 O 3 −rGO 2 was 653.2 mAh g −1 and the coulombic efficiency was 98.4 %. We found that an appropriate weight ratio and composite morphology of Fe 2 O 3 −rGO x were important in influencing the electrochemical properties of the composite anode materials for high‐energy LIBs.