Interface engineering of Co3O4 nanowire arrays with ultrafine NiO nanowires for high-performance rechargeable alkaline batteries

• Published in: Dalton transactions : an international journal of inorganic chemistry 2020-07, Vol.49 (25), p.8582-8590
• Main Authors: Zhang, Ke, Ye, Xiao, Shen, Yuenian, Cen, Ze, Xu, Kaibing, Yang, Fang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alkaline batteries; Arrays; Cobalt oxides; Composite materials; Core-shell structure; Electrochemical analysis; Energy conversion; Energy storage; Heterostructures; Metal foams; Nanowires; Nickel oxides; Rechargeable batteries; Ultrafines
• ISSN: 1477-9226; 1477-9234
• DOI: 10.1039/d0dt01556c

Interface engineering multi-component core–shell nanostructures with highly efficient and reversible faradaic reactions for energy conversion storage devices is still a challenge. Here, Co3O4 nanowires@NiO ultrafine nanowires on Ni foam were well fabricated via coating the NiO ultrafine nanowires on porous Co3O4 nanowire arrays. The combination of structural and compositional advantages endows the Co3O4@NiO core–shell composites with excellent electrochemical performance, such as a favorable specific capacity of 0.71 mA h cm−2 at 3 mA cm−2, excellent rate capability and 85% retention rate up to 10,000 cycles. Rechargeable alkaline batteries with the Co3O4@NiO core–shell composites and AC as cathode and anode, respectively, had a high specific capacity of 0.51 mA h cm−2 and stable cycling ability (81% retention after 5000 cycles). The hierarchical core–shell heterostructure electrode exhibits excellent electrochemical performance, making it a very promising material for next-generation energy storage device applications.