Optimizing Performance of ZnO Nanorod and Activated Carbon as a Composite Anode for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Abstract

To obtain the high specific capacity anode for Lithium-ion battery with stable performance is conducted by synthesizing a composite anode of ZnO-nanorods (ZnO-NR) and as a matrix is the activated carbon (AC). In this study, ZnO-NR synthesized a process that uses basic materials hexamethylenetetramine (HMTA) and zinc oxide. Activated carbon has been activated because it has high porosity and good electrical conductivity properties. Variable used is the percentage of ZnO-NR, which is 30wt%, 40wt%, and 50wt%. Characterization of the samples was examined using X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET). The battery performance of the samples was obtained by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), Cyclic Voltammetry (CV), and Charge-Discharge (CD) testing after being assembled into coin cell batteries. This study discusses the effect of adding activated carbon to ZnO NR composites. The results showed that the ZnO-NR30/AC has the highest specific capacity of 270.9 mAh g-1. According to Brunner-Emmet-Teller (BET) test, the largest surface area was 631.685 m2 g-1. Electrochemical performance is the best obtained by ZnO-NR30/AC.