One-pot synthesis of FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites as anode materials for high-rate lithium ion batteries

•Anatase FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites have been prepared by a facile one-pot hydrothermal method.•FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites show excellent rate capability.•The amount of FCNTs in FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites has been optimized.

Anatase FCNTs (functionalized carbon nanotubes)-wired TiO2 nanocomposites have been successfully synthesized via a facile one-pot hydrothermal method. The prepared composites are composed of uniform nanoparticles of TiO2 intimately interconnected by FCNTs networks. FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites display improved electrochemical performance than bare TiO2, especially for high rate capability. FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposite with 2 wt% functionalized carbon nanotubes shows optimized electrochemical performance. It exhibits high initial discharge capacity (109.2 mAh g−1) with almost no capacity fading after 100 cycles at a super-high current density of 5040 mA g−1 (30 C). The tightly bound structure with FCNTs could enhance electronic conductivity, decrease the charge transfer resistance, and increase the lithium diffusion coefficient, thus improving rate capability of TiO2 remarkably. All these results demonstrate that FCNTs-wired TiO2 nanocomposites with super rate capability and excellent cycling performance have a promising application as anode materials for lithium ion batteries.