Improving Lithium-Ion Half-/Full-Cell Performance of WO 3 -Protected SnO 2 Core-Shell Nanoarchitectures

• Published in: ChemSusChem 2021-02, Vol.14 (3), p.917-928
• Main Authors: Iftikhar, Muhammad, Ali, Basit, Nisar, Talha, Wagner, Veit, Haider, Ali, Ata-Ur-Rehman, Hussain, Sajjad, Bahadar, Ali, Saleem, Muhammad, Abbas, Syed Mustansar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1864-5631; 1864-564X
• DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202002408

Anodes derived from SnO offer a greater specific capacity comparative to graphitic carbon in lithium-ion batteries (LIBs); hence, it is imperative to find a simple but effective approach for the fabrication of SnO . The intelligent surfacing of transition metal oxides is one of the favorite strategies to dramatically boost cycling efficiency, and currently most work is primarily aimed at coating and/or compositing with carbon-based materials. Such coating materials, however, face major challenges, including tedious processing and low capacity. This study successfully reports a new and simple WO coating to produce a core-shell structure on the surface of SnO . The empty space permitted natural expansion for the SnO nanostructures, retaining a higher specific capacity for over 100 cycles that did not appear in the pristine SnO without WO shell. Using WO -protected SnO nanoparticles as anode, a coin half-cell battery was designed with Li-foil as counter-electrode. Furthermore, the anode was paired with commercial LiFePO as cathode for a coin-type full cell and tested for lithium storage performance. The WO shell proved to be an effective and strong enhancer for both current rate and specific capacity of SnO nanoarchitectures; additionally, an enhancement of cyclic stability was achieved. The findings demonstrate that the WO can be used for the improvement of cyclic characteristics of other metal oxide materials as a new coating material.