Improved Specific Capacity of Nb₂O₅ by Coating on Carbon Materials for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

Abstract

Materials for lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) with excellent electrochemical performance are of significance to meet the increasing demand for rechargeable batteries. Niobium pentoxide (Nb2O5), as an intercalation material with promising electrochemical properties has caught our attention. In this study, Nb2O5 nanoparticles were successfully synthesized through a classical sol‐gel process. The nanoparticles with a size of less than 5 nm were uniformly coated on carbon materials, i. e., reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and three‐dimensionally ordered macroporous (3DOM) carbon, under the same proportion, to explore which kind of carbon materials is more suitable to improve the electrochemical performance of Nb2O5 as an anode for LIBs. Nb2O5/3DOM carbon composite exhibited a superior electrochemical performance to the other two materials, where a high reversible capacity of 519 mA h g−1 could be maintained at the current density of 5.0C (C=201.7 mA g−1). Furthermore, the specific capacity of Nb2O5/3DOM carbon composite maintained 1163 mA h g−1 at the current density of 0.2C (C=201.7 mA g−1) after 100 cycles.

Investigating the influence of synthesis route on the crystallinity and rate capability of niobium pentoxide for energy storage

“…[20] Composites with conductive carbons have yielded useful results, where capacities as high as 519 mAhg -1 at 5C were found for a 3D carbon matrix composite. [21] The focus on the T-phase has left the research on the other polymorphs and amorphous phases of Nb 2 O 5 lacking by comparison. The Nb 2 O 5 system is already complex, but synthesis and heat treatment used to yield different polymorphs can also cause differing physical properties within the same polymorph.…”

Nb2O5 Coating to Improve the Cyclic Stability and Voltage Decay of Li-Rich Cathode Material for Lithium-Ion Battery

“…Additionally, the content of Nb2O5 is small, and only extremely weak diffraction peaks of Nb2O5 are detected in the XRD diffraction patterns around 43° and 62°. In addition, as shown in Figure 4B, it can be observed that the 3d3/2, 3d5/2, and 3d5/2 peaks in photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) are located at 209.9, 207.3 and 207.1 ev, respectively, which belong to Nb2O5 [32,33]. This indicates that Nb2O5 had been effectively coated on the surface of RLM-1.…”