Two dimensional (2D) reduced graphene oxide (RGO)/hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) based nanocomposites as anodes for high temperature rechargeable lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

With lithium-ion (li-ion) batteries as energy storage devices, operational safety from thermal runaway remains a major obstacle especially for applications in harsh environments such as in the oil industry. In this approach, a facile method via microwave irradiation technique (MWI) was followed to prepare co 3 o 4 /reduced graphene oxide (RGO)/hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanocomposites as anodes for high temperature li-ion batteries. Results showed that the addition of h-BN not only enhanced the thermal stability of Co 3 o 4 /RGO nanocomposites but also enhanced the specific surface area. co 3 o 4 /RGO/h-BN nanocomposites displayed the highest specific surface area of 191 m 2 /g evidencing the synergistic effects between RGO and h-BN. Moreover, Co 3 o 4 /RGO/h-BN also displayed the highest specific capacity with stable reversibility on the high performance after 100 cycles and lower internal resistance. Interestingly, this novel nanocomposite exhibits outstanding high temperature performances with excellent cycling stability (100% capacity retention) and a decreased internal resistance at 150 °C. Li-ion batteries energy storage devices are used as a power source for almost all electronic devices due to the superior benefits over other types of batteries 1-4. However, the safety feature and the narrow temperature operating range of li-ion batteries remain a major obstacle for more complex applications of li-ion batteries such as in the oil industry, defense, automotive applications and aerospace that demand safe operation at wide temperature range (up to 150 °C). Li-ion batteries are known to operate effectively between −20 °C and 60 °C 5. With the increasing demand for li-ion batteries, many research has been made on increasing its thermal stability and the upper operating temperature range. When considering safety issues of li-ion batteries it is mainly related to thermal runaway. Conditions such as elevated temperature and high charge levels or overcharging abuses one or more of the battery components that results in what is called a short circuit leading to heat, fire or explosion. A process referred to as thermal runaway 6. Thermal runaway mechanisms occur mainly at the electrodes and electrolytes. Thermal decomposition of the electrodes or electrolytes and reduction or oxidation of the electrolyte is the main cause of thermal runaways. To solve this issue, many preventative measures have been investigated. Preventative measures can be the use of safety devices, that is, design devices that release high pressure and heat before thermal runaway but this is for engineers to set up new safe li-ion battery devices. However, what concerns scientists more is the inherent safety from electrodes, to electrolytes 7. Compromising between the electrochemical performances and thermal stability is a challenge.

Graphene‐Based Nanomaterials for Flexible and Stretchable Batteries

“…[248,249,[260][261][262]264,[268][269][270][271][272] A typical fabrication method involves mixing exfoliated flakes of 2D material and rGO, and then preparing a free-standing film using a process such as vacuum filtration. [55,273,274] For example, David et al fabricated a free-standing hybrid electrode using rGO and MoS 2 particles as anodes for SIBs. (Figure 7b) [274] Firstly, few-layer MoS 2 with theoretical capacity of 670 mAh g −1 , prepared through an acid-based exfoliation process, was mixed with GO flakes in water to prepare a homogenous dispersion solution.…”

“…The graphene prepared by both aforementioned methods has the advantage of retaining the pristine characteristics of graphene while forming various nano/macro structures. [53][54][55][56][57][58][59] Therefore, the electrodes developed from the nano/micro-structured graphene with varying dimensions are ideal for improving the performance of the fabricated batteries. For example, 0D nanoparticles [51,[60][61][62][63] and 1D ribbons/wires [64][65][66] are very effective in improving battery performance because of conductivity and surface area of graphene.…”

Engineering 2D Materials: A Viable Pathway for Improved Electrochemical Energy Storage

“…In addition to the improved electron transfer efficiency (e.g., by introducing graphene) as discussed in Section 2.5, the multifunctions are critical in realizing and improving some functional second batteries (e.g., the flexible metal-air and thermoelectric batteries). [237][238][239][240][241][242][243][244][245][246][247][248] The flexibility and the thermal management can be achieved by directly incorporating 2D materials (e.g., graphene and hBN) into the devices, [240,246] so, instead of doing a further discussion on them, we will focus our discussion next on the improved energy storage performance and the newly induced catalysis from the hybrid engineering.…”

Nanostructured Graphene Oxide-Based Hybrids as Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries

“…More recently, Mussa et al [490] used a microwave irradiation technique to prepare Co 3 O 4 /rGO/ hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) nanocomposites as anodes for high-temperature LIBs. The addition of h-BN not only enhances the thermal stability but also increases the specific surface area (191 m 2 g −1 ) of composites.…”