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Facile Aluminum Reduction Synthesis of Blue TiO 2 with Oxygen Deficiency for Lithium‐Ion Batteries
Author(s) -
Zheng Jing,
Ji Guangbin,
Zhang Peng,
Cao Xingzhong,
Wang Baoyi,
Yu Linhui,
Xu Zhichuan
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
chemistry – a european journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.687
H-Index - 242
eISSN - 1521-3765
pISSN - 0947-6539
DOI - 10.1002/chem.201503266
Subject(s) - x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , anatase , lithium (medication) , oxygen , electron paramagnetic resonance , materials science , nanoparticle , particle size , ion , diffusion , chemical engineering , inorganic chemistry , nanotechnology , chemistry , catalysis , photocatalysis , nuclear magnetic resonance , medicine , biochemistry , physics , organic chemistry , engineering , thermodynamics , endocrinology
Abstract An ultrafacile aluminum reduction method is reported herein for the preparation of blue TiO 2 nanoparticles (donated as Al–TiO 2 , anatase phase) with abundant oxygen deficiency for lithium‐ion batteries. Under aluminum reduction, the morphology of the TiO 2 nanosheets changes from well‐defined rectangular into uniform round or oval nanoparticles and the particle size also decreases from 60 to 31 nm, which can aggressively accelerate the lithium‐ion diffusion. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) results reveal that plentiful oxygen deficiencies relative to the Ti 3+ species were generated in blue Al–TiO 2 ; this effectively enhances the electron conductivity of the TiO 2 . X‐ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) analysis indicates that a small peak is observed for the AlO bond, which probably plays a very important role in the stabilization of the oxygen deficiencies/Ti 3+ species. As a result, the blue Al–TiO 2 possesses significantly higher capacity, better rate performance, and a longer cycle life than the white pure TiO 2 . Such improvements can be attributed to the decreased particle size, as well as the existence of the oxygen deficiencies/Ti 3+ species.