To overcome inferior rate capability and cycle stability of MnO-based materials as a lithium-ion battery anode associated with the pulverization and gradual aggregation during the conversion process, we constructed robust mesoporous N-doped carbon (N-C) protected MnO nanoparticles on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) (MnO@N-C/rGO) by a simple top-down incorporation strategy. Such dual carbon protection endows MnO@N-C/rGO with excellent structural stability and enhanced charge transfer kinetics. At 100 mA g-1, it exhibits superior rate capability as high as 864.7 mAh g-1, undergoing the deep charge/discharge for 70 cycles and outstanding cyclic stability (after 1300 cyclic tests at 2000 mA g-1; 425.0 mAh g-1 remains, accompanying merely 0.004% capacity decay per cycle). This facile method provides a novel strategy for synthesis of porous electrodes by making use of highly insulating materials.
Keywords: anode; graphene oxide; lithium-ion battery; manganese monoxide; nitrogen doping.