Ferrocene as a Novel Additive to Enhance the Lithium-Ion Storage Capability of SnO2/Graphene Composite.

Improving the reversibility of conversion reaction is a promising way to enhance the lithium-ion storage capability of SnO2-based anodes. Herein, we report ferrocene as a novel additive to improve the Li-ion storage performance of the SnO2/graphene (SnO2/G) composite. Through a simple mixing method, ferrocene can be uniformly dispersed into the SnO2/G electrode. It is found that the ferrocene additive can effectively suppress the agglomeration of Sn/SnO2 and retain the nanoscale Sn/Li2O interface. Furthermore, metallic Fe is formed from ferrocene in the discharge process and acts as a catalyst to promote the reversible conversion between Sn/Li2O and SnO2. As a result, the SnO2/G electrode with the addition of 10 wt % ferrocene (10%Fc-SnO2/G) exhibits a superior Li-ion storage performance. It displays a reversible capacity of up to 1084.5 mAh g-1 at 0.1 A g-1 after 150 cycles with a good rate capability (752 mAh g-1 at 1 A g-1). In addition, the 10%Fc-SnO2/G electrode can retain a capacity of 787.2 mAh g-1 at 0.5 A g-1 after 220 cycles. This work demonstrates the promising additive of ferrocene in enhancing the reversible capacity of SnO2-based anodes for lithium-ion batteries.