Carbon-decorated single-crystalline Ni2P nanotubes derived from ni nanowire templates: a high-performance material for Li-ion batteries

Yi Lu; Jiangping Tu; Qinqin Xiong; Yanqiang Qiao; Jun Zhang; Changdong Gu; Xiuli Wang; Scott X Mao

doi:10.1002/chem.201103724

Carbon-decorated single-crystalline Ni2P nanotubes derived from ni nanowire templates: a high-performance material for Li-ion batteries

Chemistry. 2012 May 7;18(19):6031-8. doi: 10.1002/chem.201103724. Epub 2012 Mar 29.

Authors

Yi Lu¹, Jiangping Tu, Qinqin Xiong, Yanqiang Qiao, Jun Zhang, Changdong Gu, Xiuli Wang, Scott X Mao

Affiliation

¹ State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, PR China.

PMID: 22461386
DOI: 10.1002/chem.201103724

Abstract

Single-crystalline Ni(2)P nanotubes (NTs) were facilely synthesized by using a Ni nanowire template. The mechanism for the formation of the tubular structures was related to the nanoscale Kirkendall effect. These NTs exhibited a core/shell structure with an amorphous carbon layer that was grown in situ by employing oleylamine as a capping agent. Galvanostatic charge/discharge measurements indicated that these Ni(2)P/C NTs exhibited superior high-rate capability and good cycling stability. There was still about 310 mA h g(-1) retained after 100 cycles at a rate of 5 C. Importantly, the tubular nanostructures and the single-crystalline nature of the Ni(2)P NTs were also preserved after prolonged cycling at a relatively high rate. These improvements were attributed to the stable nanotubular structure of Ni(2)P and the carbon shell, which enhanced the conductivity of Ni(2)P, suppressed the aggregation of active particles, and increased the electrode stability during cycling.