Self nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes as anode materials for high capacity and cycling stability lithium-ion batteries

The great demand for high-power lithium-ion batteries has spurred extensive research on carbonaceous electrode materials. Herein, we reported a facile way of preparing novel carbon nanotubes with high nitrogen doping. Helical and straight 3-aminophenol formaldehyde resin nanotubes were first prepared based on the self assembly of the chiral amphiphiles, which were then used as carbon sources to fabricate self nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes via pyrolysis process. When the resins were carbonized at 600 degrees C, carbon nanotubes with a high nitrogen-content of 9.6 wt% were obtained, which maintained the original morphology of the resins. The electrochemical tests disclosed that the carbon nanotubes exhibited excellent Li storage capacity and superior cycling stability. A high reversible specific capacity of 1056 mAh g(-1) at 0.1 A g(-1) was obtained after 300 cycles, which is greatly higher than that of graphite and most of polymer derived carbonaceous materials. The research data implied that the nitrogen doping content plays an important role in the electrochemical performance of the carbon nanotubes. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.