MnO/Metal/Carbon Nanohybrid Lithium-Ion Battery Anode With Enhanced Electrochemical Performance: Universal Facile Scalable Synthesis and Fundamental Understanding

MnO holds a great promise as an alternative lithium-ion battery anode. It is crucial to improve the cyclic stability and rate capability of MnO-based anodes. A facile scalable strategy to incorporate metal nanoparticles into the MnO/carbon anodes is developed as demonstrated by the MnO/Ag/C and MnO/Ni/C nanohybrids. Difunctional methacrylate monomers are used as solvent and carbon source, where the precursors of MnO and metal are homogeneously mixed at the molecular level and converted into a thermosetting polymer. MnO and metal nanoparticles are in situ formed and homogeneously embedded in the in situ formed carbon matrix after the carbonization process. The influence of the metal nanoparticles on the structure and properties of the MnO-based anodes is systematically investigated. The mass composition of the MnO phase within the nanohybrid is controlled to be at a relatively low level, which is helpful for maintaining a good cyclic stability at the expense of the reversible capacities. However, the reversible capacities are increased by the incorporation of the metal nanoparticles due to enhanced electrochemical kinetics, where both excellent cyclic stability and rate performance are exhibited simultaneously. The mechanism responsible for the performance improvement is explored by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic voltammetry, and temperature-dependent resistivity measurements.