Tunable confinement of Cu-Zn bimetallic oxides in carbon nanofiber networks by thermal diffusion for lithium-ion battery

Abstract

In terms of solving the phase separation of metal oxides and polymer derived carbon matrix during the carbonization process, two active metal oxides with different thermal diffusion features are simultaneously introduced. The agglomeration and migration of copper-based species during the carbonization process are well suppressed by the existence of homogenous ZnO distributed in carbon matrix with less migration ability. The unique carbon-confined Cu-Zn bimetallic oxides films are constructed via a facile electrospinning method and subsequently annealing process. Taking advantage of the suppressive effect of ZnO, the agglomeration and migration of copper-based particles are restrained and thus realizes the size regulation of Cu2O/Cu particles as well as the confinement in carbon nanofibers. Our designed architecture not only maintains the intrinsic interface properties of carbon nanofiber, but also distinctively enhances a highly reversible lithium-ion storage nature. Moreover, the preparation technique can be applied for constructing self-supported flexible electrodes without the additional current collector, seasonably satisfying the requirement of flexible electronics industry and effectively avoiding the employment of superfluous electrode redundancy.