Synthesis and Electrochemical Cycling of Nanostructured Ti2C Mxene as Anode Materials for Lithium-ion Batteries

Abstract

By offering a high energy density, long cycle life, and relatively low self-discharge rates, LIBs have become the preferred choice for powering everything from smartphones to electric vehicles. Their ability to be rapidly charged and discharged while maintaining a compact and lightweight form has also made them essential in renewable energy systems, where they facilitate the storage of solar and wind energy. The electrochemical performance of a LIB greatly depends upon the anode material. The essential requirements for excellent anode material of Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are high safety, minimal volume expansion during the lithiation/de-lithiation process, high cyclic stability, and high Li+ storage capability. However, most of the anode materials for LIBs, such as graphite, SnO2, Si, Al, Li4Ti5O12, etc., have at least one issue. Hence, creating novel anode materials continues to be difficult. Broad adoption has already been started of MXenes materials in various energy storage technologies such as super-capacitors and batteries due to the increasing versatility of the preparation methods as well as the ongoing discovery of new members. Few MXenes have been investigated experimentally as anode of LIBs till date due to their distinct active voltage windows, large power capabilities, and longer cyclic life. Here, Ti2C MXene was synthesized by using an efficient NaOH etching technique. The surface appearance, structural composition, and crystalline structure were assessed using X-ray diffraction, SEM, and EDX analysis. The as-synthesized MXene were used as negative electrode in LIB and electrochemical performance were evaluated. First cycle charge-discharge capacities are found 658.02 mAhg-1 and 419.11 mAhg-1 respectively with an initial columbic efficiency of 63.6% and excellent capacity retention of 259.1 mAhg-1 is obtained after 100 cycles at a current density of 50 mAg-1. The excellent cyclic performance and stability of this cell are attributed to the unique properties of MXene structure such as high electronic conductivity, low operating voltage, large surface area and fast Li ion diffusion characteristics