In this study, we attempted a nanosized coating layer of commercial polypyrrole (PPy) on LiNi0.6Co0.1Mn0.3O2 (HNCM) cathode material to overcome the side reactions with electrolyte and a decrease in the capacity of the inert coating layer. The coating method using commercial PPy is very simple. The energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images confirmed that PPy coating layer was well dispersed and nanosized. The alternating current (AC) impedance studies revealed that the coating of PPy significantly decreased the charge-transfer resistance of HNCM electrodes. Moreover, the 1 wt% PPy-HNCM electrode exhibited good electrochemical performance with a specific discharge capacity of 177.52 mA h g(-1) at a rate of 0.1 C in the voltage range 3.0-4.3 V, whereas the capacity of the HNCM electrode was only 167.13 mA h g(-1).

Silicon oxide hollow nanorods (SiO2-HNs) were prepared via a two-step anodization of aluminum template. SiO2 was synthesized using tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as the Si source that has not been applied to the anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template method. The SiO2-HNs obtained were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and electrochemical test. The results show that SiO2 nanorods with hollow morphology were successfully formed by the AAO template. The SiO2-HNs were investigated as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries and delivered an initial reversible capacity of 1344.26 mA h g(-1) at a current density of 17 mAg(-1). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the synthesis of SiO2-HN using TEOS as the Si source by a two-step anodization of AAO template.