FeMoO4 nanorods anchored on graphene sheets as a potential anode for high performance sodium ion batteries

Abstract

Metal molybdate nanostructures hold great promise as better performing electrode material for sodium ion batteries. In this work, graphene encapsulated FeMoO4 nanorods have been prepared using a simple, facile, scalable and low-cost technique. The uniform distribution of homogeneous and well-defined FeMoO4 nanorods over graphene sheets is apparently evidenced by HR-TEM. The exclusively designed architecture effectively mitigates the severe volume changes associated with the conversion mechanism driven prolonged cycling along with the improved electronic conductivity of the electrode. As a result, FeMoO4/graphene composite anode exploited for the first time as an anode for SIBs exhibits excellent electrochemical performance in terms of high specific capacity (294 mAh g−1 at 50 mA g−1 after 100 cycles), good cycling stability (83% after 100 cycles) and an acceptable rate capability (110 mAh g−1 at 1000 mA g−1). More importantly, FeMoO4/Graphene composite anode demonstrates stable cycling behavior with almost 100% capacity retention even after 1000 cycles at 0.5 A g−1, which implies that the FeMoO4/G composite anode qualifies itself as a high performing anode material for sodium ion battery applications.