Ultrafine SnO2 nanoparticles on delaminated MXene nanosheets as an anode for lithium-ion batteries

Commercial graphite anodes show limited capacity in lithium-ion batteries, which inhibits the development of high-energy and high-power devices. Although the theoretical capacity of SnO2 based anodes is three times higher than that of graphite, their practical application is hindered by the poor cycling stability. In this study, we report a ball-milling assisted exfoliation method for the scalable production of delaminated MXene nanosheets, followed by the preparation of 5 nm SnO2 nanocrystals anchored on MXene nanosheets through a hydrothermal reaction. SnO2/MXenes nanocomposites exhibit long cycling life up to 1000 cycles with a high capacity of 904 mA h g−1, which can be ascribed to the high conductivity of the MXene substrates, and the anchoring effect between SnO2 nanoparticles and MXene sheets that can prevent crystal aggregation or collapse during cycling.