J. Mater. Sci. Technol. ›› 2020, Vol. 53: 126-131.DOI: 10.1016/j.jmst.2020.02.077

• Research Article • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Nature-inspired Cu2O@CoO tree-like architecture for robust storage of sodium

Zhenzhu Wang, Menglei Sun, Jiangfeng Ni*(), Liang Li*()   

  1. School of Physical Science and Technology, Center for Energy Conversion Materials & Physics (CECMP), Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Thin Films, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006, China
  • Received:2020-02-01 Revised:2020-02-27 Accepted:2020-02-28 Published:2020-09-15 Online:2020-09-21
  • Contact: Jiangfeng Ni,Liang Li

Abstract:

We report a nature-inspired design of tree-like architecture of cuprous oxide (Cu2O) stem and cobalt oxides (CoO) branch serving as an efficient anode for sodium-ion batteries. The construction of stem-branch architectures involves the growth of Cu2O nanorods and the subsequent deposition of CoO nanowires. Due to abundant active sites and full exposure to electrolyte, such a Cu2O@CoO stem-branch architecture demonstrates a robust storage toward Na+ ions, affording a capacity retention of ~100% over 300 continuous cycles and a remarkable rate capability of 296 mAh g-1 at 1 A g-1. This result clearly shows the potential of nature-inspired materials engineering may find extensive applications in the design of high-performance electrodes for rechargeable batteries.

Key words: Nature-inspired design, Architecture, Cuprous oxide, Sodium-ion battery