Facile Synthesis of Hollow MoS2 Microspheres/Amorphous Carbon Composites and Their Lithium Storage Properties

•Hollow MoS2 MACCs have been successfully synthesized.•Initial discharge capacity of 1545 mAhg−1 is obtained at 100 mAg−1.•Hollow MoS2 MACCs show enhanced cycling stability and rate capability.•Amorphous carbon can improve electrochemical performance.

In this paper, we report a facile process to synthesize hollow MoS2 microspheres/amorphous carbon composites (MACCs) by hydrothermal method and their improved electrochemical performance in Lithium ion batteries (LIBs). The composites prepared are characterized by XRD, SEM, HRTEM and EDS. MoS2 nanosheets are uniformly grow on the surface of amorphous carbon. The interlayer-distance of the adjacent MoS2 nanosheets in the composites is about 0.64 nm. As an electrode material for the LIBs, hollow MoS2 MACCs exhibit excellent cyclic stability with 1147 mAhg−1 at 100 mAg−1 after 100 cycles, which displays more prominent performance than that of the hollow MoS2 microspheres. Moreover, the reversible capacity for the hollow MoS2 MACCs can be still maintain at 876 mAhg−1 at 1000 mAg−1. The enhanced electrochemical performance of hollow MoS2 MACCs could be attributed to their unique hollow structure, large specific surface area, the increased interlayer-distance and the synergistic effects between hollow MoS2 microspheres and amorphous carbon.

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