Facile synthesis of porous iron oxide/graphene hybrid nanocomposites and potential application in electrochemical energy storage

• Published in: New journal of chemistry 2017, Vol.41 (22), p.13553-13559
• Main Authors: Min, Jiakang, Kierzek, Krzysztof, Chen, Xuecheng, Chu, Paul K, Zhao, Xi, Kale czuk, Ryszard J, Tang, Tao, Mijowska, Ewa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1144-0546; 1369-9261
• DOI: 10.1039/c7nj03416d

A facile and efficient method is used to synthesize porous iron oxide coated with graphene as electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors. Graphene encapsulation of porous Fe 2 O 3 and Fe 3 O 4 nanorods is directly carried out from FeOOH@GO colloids by taking advantage of an electrostatic self-assembly method, owing to the positively-charged surface of FeOOH and the negatively-charged surface of GO. The combination of graphene and porous iron oxide brings about multifunctional features of the electrode materials as follows: (1) enhanced electrical conductivity makes the electrodes the current collectors; (2) reinforced softness of the electrodes accommodates the large volume changes during charge-discharge cycles; (3) improved high specific surface area of the electrodes increases the accessibility of the active electrode materials to electrolyte; (4) the pores formed by graphene and iron oxide particles facilitate ion transportation; (5) iron oxide particles separate graphene and prevent their restacking or agglomeration, and vice versa , thus improving the immersion and splitting of electrolyte into and out of the electroactive material. Consequently, the porous iron oxide/graphene hybrid nanocomposites deliver a good performance in the electrochemical energy storage for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors. A facile and efficient method is used to synthesize porous iron oxide coated with graphene as electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors.