Synthesis of Mesoporous ZnO Nanosheets via Facile Solvothermal Method as the Anode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries

Xin Wang; Lanyan Huang; Yan Zhao; Yongguang Zhang; Guofu Zhou

doi:10.1186/s11671-016-1244-9

Synthesis of Mesoporous ZnO Nanosheets via Facile Solvothermal Method as the Anode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries

Nanoscale Res Lett. 2016 Dec;11(1):37. doi: 10.1186/s11671-016-1244-9. Epub 2016 Jan 27.

Authors

Xin Wang¹, Lanyan Huang^{2

3}, Yan Zhao^{4

5}, Yongguang Zhang^{6

7}, Guofu Zhou⁸

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Electronic Paper Displays, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, 510006, China. wangxin@scnu.edu.cn.
² Institute of Electronic Paper Displays, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, 510006, China. hly532531628@qq.com.
³ Institute for Advanced Materials (IAM), South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, 510006, China. hly532531628@qq.com.
⁴ Research Institute for Energy Equipment Materials, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin, 300130, China. zhaoyan84830@hotmail.com.
⁵ Tianjin Key Laboratory of Laminating Fabrication and Interface Control Technology for Advanced Materials, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin, 300130, China. zhaoyan84830@hotmail.com.
⁶ Research Institute for Energy Equipment Materials, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin, 300130, China. yongguangzhang@hebut.edu.cn.
⁷ Tianjin Key Laboratory of Laminating Fabrication and Interface Control Technology for Advanced Materials, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin, 300130, China. yongguangzhang@hebut.edu.cn.
⁸ Institute of Electronic Paper Displays, South China Academy of Advanced Optoelectronics, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, 510006, China. zhougf@scnu.edu.cn.

Abstract

Mesoporous ZnO nanosheets are synthesized through a room temperature solvothermal method. Transmission and scanning electronic microscopy observations indicate that as-prepared ZnO hierarchical aggregates are composed and assembled by nanosheets with a length of 1-2 μm and a thickness of 10-20 nm, and interlaced ZnO nanosheets irregularly stack together, forming a three-dimensional network. Furthermore, large mesopores are embedded in the walls of ZnO nanosheets, confirmed by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) measurement. Accordingly, the resulting ZnO anode exhibits a high and stable specific discharge capacity of 421 mAh g(-1) after 100 cycles at 200 mA g(-1) and a good rate capability. Such electrochemical performance could be attributed to the multiple synergistic effects of its mesoporous nanosheet structure, which can not only provide a large specific surface area for lithium storage, but also favor the ion transport and electrolyte diffusion.

Keywords: Lithium-ion battery; Mesoporous ZnO nanosheet; Solvothermal; ZnO anode.