A magnesiothermic route to multicomponent nanocomposites of FeSi 2@Si@graphene and FeSi2@Si with promising anode performance

Kanyaporn Adpakpang, Ji Eun Park, Seung Mi Oh, Sung Jin Kim, Seong Ju Hwang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

28 Scopus citations

Abstract

The multicomponent nanocomposites of FeSi2@Si@graphene and FeSi2@Si are synthesized via the magnesiothermic reduction of core-shell Fe3O4@SiO2 nanoparticles with/without graphene oxide shell. In the course of the magnesiothermic reaction, the SiO2 and Fe3O4 components in the Fe3O4@SiO2 core-shell particles are transformed into elemental Si and FeSi2, respectively. The formation of intimately-coupled composite structure consisting of Si and FeSi2 domains as well as the coating of graphene layer is verified by high resolution-transmission electron microscopy. Both the nanocomposites of FeSi2@Si@graphene and FeSi2@Si show promising anode performance for lithium ion batteries, indicating a beneficial role of the electrochemically inactive FeSi2 domains in alleviating the drastic expansion/contraction of elemental Si during the electrochemical cycling. The better cyclability and rate characteristic are obtained for the FeSi 2@Si@graphene nanocomposite than for the graphene-free FeSi 2@Si one, which is attributable to the depression of pulverization and the enhancement of electrical conductivity upon the coating of graphene layer. The present work highlights that the magnesiothermic reaction provides a powerful synthetic route to multicomponent Si-based nanocomposites with tailored composition and complex geometry.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)483-492
Number of pages10
JournalElectrochimica Acta
Volume136
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Aug 2014

Keywords

  • Anode materials
  • Graphene
  • Lithium secondary batteries
  • Magnesiothermic reaction
  • Nanocomposites
  • Nanoparticles

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