Si/C composites prepared by spray drying from cross-linked polyvinyl alcohol as Li-ion batteries anodes

Si/C composites have been synthesized by spray drying technique and investigated as a potential anode material for lithium-ion batteries. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) has been used as carbon precursor because it is soluble in water and consequently the spray drying step can be done in an environmental friendly media. This technique favours the coating of silicon particles with a polymer layer which is then carbonized to get a homogeneous carbon coating. Although the galvanostatic cycling stability of Si/C composite is slightly improved compared to that of pure nano-silicon, a significant enhancement of cycleability was observed by adding a PVA cross-linking step before pyrolysis.