Ordered WO3-x nanorods: facile synthesis and their electrochemical properties for aluminum-ion batteries.

In this work, we have synthesized ordered WO3 nanorods via a facile hydrothermal process. And the series WO3-x nanorods with oxygen vacancies are obtained via a subsequent thermal reduction process. The formation mechanisms of WO3-x nanorods with different oxygen vacancies are proposed. And the electrochemical results reveal that the WO3-x nanorods exhibit the improved specific capacity due to the oxygen vacancies caused by the thermal reduction. More importantly, the reaction mechanism of the WO3-x nanorods as cathodes for aluminum-ion batteries has been proved.