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Self-standing Na-storage anode of Fe2O3 nanodots encapsulated in porous N-doped carbon nanofibers with ultra-high cyclic stability

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Abstract

Ultrasmall γ-Fe2O3 nanodots (∼ 3.4 nm) were homogeneously encapsulated in interlinked porous N-doped carbon nanofibers (labeled as Fe2O3@C) at a considerable loading (∼ 51 wt.%) via an electrospinning technique. Moreover, the size and content of Fe2O3 could be controlled by adjusting the synthesis conditions. The obtained Fe2O3@C that functioned as a self-standing membrane was used directly as a binder- and current collector-free anode for sodium-ion batteries, displaying fascinating electrochemical performance in terms of the exceptional rate capability (529 mA·h·g–1 at 100 mA·g–1 compared with 215 mA·h·g–1 at 10,000 mA·g–1) and unprecedented cyclic stability (98.3% capacity retention over 1,000 cycles). Furthermore, the Na-ion full cell constructed with the Fe2O3@C anode and a P2-Na2/3Ni1/3Mn2/3O2 cathode also exhibited notable durability with 97.2% capacity retention after 300 cycles. This outstanding performance is attributed to the distinctive three-dimensional network structure of the very-fine Fe2O3 nanoparticles uniformly embedded in the interconnected porous N-doped carbon nanofibers that effectively facilitated electronic/ionic transport and prevented active materials pulverization/aggregation caused by volume change upon prolonged cycling. The simple and scalable preparation route, as well as the excellent electrochemical performance, endows the Fe2O3@C nanofibers with great prospects as high-rate and long-life Na-storage anode materials.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support from the National Natural Scientific Foundation of China (No. 51532002), the National Basic Research Program of China (No. 2015CB932500), the National Postdoctoral Program for Innovative Talents (No. BX201600014), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. FRF-TP-16-078A1), and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2016M600042) are greatly acknowledged.

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  1. Yongchang Liu and Fanfan Wang contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Bei**g, Bei**g, 100083, China

    Yongchang Liu, Fanfan Wang & Li-Zhen Fan

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  1. Yongchang Liu
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  2. Fanfan Wang
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Correspondence to Li-Zhen Fan.

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12274_2018_1985_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

Self-standing Na-storage anode of Fe2O3 nanodots encapsulated in porous N-doped carbon nanofibers with ultra-high cyclic stability

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Liu, Y., Wang, F. & Fan, LZ. Self-standing Na-storage anode of Fe2O3 nanodots encapsulated in porous N-doped carbon nanofibers with ultra-high cyclic stability. Nano Res. 11, 4026–4037 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-018-1985-0

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