Constructing Mn-O-C bonds in Mn3O4/Super P composite for superior performance in Li-ion battery

Chemically bonded Mn3O4/Super P (MS) composite was prepared via a facile co-precipitation and the following heat treatment process for lithium ion batteries anode material, which presents interconnected granular shape about 40-50 nm. The prepared MS composite exhibits a high initial capacity of 1382 mA h g(-1), which gradually reaches to 1537 mA h g(-1) after 60 cycles and then decreases to 1340 mA h g(-1) at the next 40 cycles at the current density of 100 mA g(-1). Moreover at a higher current densities of 500 and 1000 mA h g(-1), the capacities are 1079 and 790 mA h g(-1), respectively. Further studies showed that a different electron transfer path maintained by Mn-O-C bonding made the reversibility of the reaction for MnO to Mn3O4 largely improve, which provides more superior capacity than nonbonding samples. In this work, the effect of Mn-O-C bonding on the conversion reaction and the performance promotion could give help to the study of other transition metal oxides.