SnO2/TiO2 nanocomposites embedded in porous carbon as a superior anode material for lithium-ion batteries

Abstract With the objective of improving the capacity and cycling stability of SnO 2 -based anode materials, a new material of SnO 2 /TiO 2 nanocomposites dispersed at porous carbon was synthesized via a route of absorption and carbonization by using Ti-MOF (MIL-125) as both titanium and carbon sources and SnCl 2 as tin source. The composite shows micro-/nano-scale combined configuration: a monodisperse sub-micro cylinder structure formed by well-dispersed SnO 2 and TiO 2 nanoparticles in amorphous carbon matrix. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of TiO 2 nanoparticle and amorphous carbon on maintaining the robust architecture as well as the uniform and stable nano-sized particles, the composite exhibits excellent performance as anode material for lithium-ion batteries: a high specific capacity of 1177 mA h g −1 and 88.7% capacity retention after 100 cycles at 100 mA h g −1 , and a stable capacity of 487 at high current density of 2 A g −1 .