Lithium storage behavior of manganese based complex spinel titanate as anode material for Li-ion batteries

•Complex spinel Li2MnTi3O8 is prepared by a simple solid state reaction route.•Quasi-reversible structural evolution of Li2MnTi3O8 is proved by in-situ XRD.•Li2MnTi3O8 shows a reversible capacity of 193.8 mAh g−1 after 50 cycles.

Complex spinel Li2MnTi3O8 is prepared by a simple solid state reaction route. Electrochemical test shows that Li2MnTi3O8 reveals excellent electrochemical property as anode material with a reversible capacity of 193.8 mAh g−1 and corresponding capacity retention of 88.0% after 50 cycles. In-situ X-ray diffraction observation reveals that Li2MnTi3O8 shows a quasi-reversible structural evolution during charge–discharge process. For the lithium storage process, lithium-ion initially migrates to 4a position and forms Li–O octahedron at high lithiation potential, and then lithium-ion accommodates 8c position to form Li–O tetrahedron at low lithiation potential. The reverse charge process is quasi-reversible. As a result, Li2MnTi3O8 shows high structural stability as a promising lithium storage material for lithium-ion batteries.

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