Lithium intercalation into single-walled carbon nanotubes network electrode: Storage mechanisms and impurity effects

This is a detailed study of how impurities can affect the mechanisms of lithium storage in composite electrodes consisting of a three-dimensional single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) bundles network. To remove impurities such as fullerenes, amorphous carbon, catalyst, and nanographite, we submitted the SWCNT bundles to an appropriate chemical treatment before using them to prepare the electrode. Then, we analyzed how this treatment influenced electrode potential, fading capacity, and specific capacity. Additionally, we evaluated the electrode prepared with high-purity SWNCT bundles by galvanostatic intermittent titration, to obtain lithium transport parameters under thermodynamic conditions. We achieved an intrinsic specific capacity of 400 mAh g−1 for the purified SWCNT bundles prepared by an arc-reactor method. The transport parameters revealed that the electrode underwent electronic transition of the semiconducting-metal type. The chemical diffusion coefficient ranged from 10−4 to 10−18 cm2 s−1 with decreasing electrode potential.