Three-dimensional Ti3C2 MXene@silicon@nitrogen-doped carbon foam for high performance self-standing lithium-ion battery anodes

Abstract

Silicon (Si) is one of the most promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) because of its high specific capacity. However, the poor cycling stability results from huge volume fluctuation and low intrinsic conductivity, which greatly hinders Si-based anodes development. Herein, we construct a three-dimensional structure comprised of Silicon nanoparticles (SiNPs) anchored on a nitrogen -doped carbon (NC) foam with a covered MXene layer ([email protected]@NC foam), which acts as a self-standing Si-based anode for high performance LIBs. The design of NC foam as the conductive frame and MXene as the covering layer provides effective channels for electron transport/ion diffusion, and simultaneously allows the anode to adapt to the drastic Si volume change during lithiation/delithiation. The self-standing [email protected]@NC foam electrode delivers a high specific capacity (1658 mAh g−1 after 100 cycles at 0.1C) and a steady cycling capacity (857 mAh g−1 after 500 cycles at 0.5C). Moreover, a full-cell constructed using [email protected]@NC foam //NCM111 exhibits a high gravimetric energy density (433 Wh kg−1). This [email protected]@NC foam anode with good electrochemical performance renders as a promising candidate for broad LIBs applications.