The fabrication and characterization of Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 as a new anode material for lithium ion batteries

Abstract Zinc carbonate hydroxide, Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 is successfully prepared via a facile hydrothermal method, which shows flaky morphology with diameter of several micrometers and mean thickness of 200 nm. The Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 is thermal stable below 200 °C, which gradually decomposes into ZnO in temperature region 210–450 °C. The electrochemical property of the as-prepared Zn5(CO3)2(OH)6 micro-flakes as a new anode material for lithium ion batteries is firstly studied, which exhibits obvious voltage plateaus and stable cycle performance, endowing it with potential application in lithium ion batteries.