Synthesis and electrochemical properties of zinc germanate nanowires as novel anode material for lithium-ion battery

In this paper, the zinc germinate (Zn2GeO4) was successfully synthesized by the mixed solvothermal method combined with calcination at different temperatures in an argon atmosphere. The expected compounds were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and transmission electron microscope (TEM) techniques. The electrochemical properties of samples were tested by a battery comprehensive test system and electrochemical workstation. The experimental results showed that zinc germanate with the morphology of nanowires was formed. The calcination temperature was an important factor to affect electrochemical properties of zinc germanate (Zn2GeO4). It was found that the sample nanowires formed at 650 degrees C (Zn2GeO4-650) behaved the best electrochemical properties among all samples. Under the current density of 100 mA g(-1), the initial discharge specific capacity of Zn2GeO4-650 could reach 2200 mAh g(-1); the second discharge specific capacity was about 1240 mAh g(-1) and kept at 1199 mAh g(-1) after 150 cycles, in which the decay rate was about 3.3%. The reasons for Zn2GeO4-650 to behave outstanding electrochemical properties were discussed also. The Zn2GeO4 synthesized by this method at typical condition is a novel and potential anode material for lithium-ion battery application.