Copper silicate nanotubes anchored on reduced graphene oxide for long-life lithium-ion battery

Copper silicate (CSO) is a promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). It delivers high specific capacity; however, the capacity fades quickly because of its intrinsic poor electric conductivity and large volume variation during lithium ion insertion/extraction. Herein, a sandwich-like structure with CSO nanotubes grown on both sides of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) is designed to solve the capacity fading issue. The RGO not only serves as a soft and robust matrix to mitigate the large volume change during cycling but also acts as the electron highway. When applied as the anode material for LIBs, the as-obtained CSO/RGO sandwich-like structure exhibits high reversible capacity, good rate capability, and excellent cycling stability. A reversible capacity of 516 mA h g−1 can be achieved after 1000 cycles at 500 mA g−1.